


To Remember You: To Russia With Love

by tiggerblu



Series: To Remember You [4]
Category: Glee
Genre: M/M, Reincarnation, Romance, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2020-06-07
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:07:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 53,688
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24207922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tiggerblu/pseuds/tiggerblu
Summary: This is the third one-shot I have done for my story To Remember You. If you haven’t read the original, this one might not make sense. It is a story of love, reincarnation, and soul mates, finding each other lifetime after lifetime, time after time. *I don't own Glee, or the characters portrayed*. Just my story. AU. Thank You, TB.
Relationships: Blaine Anderson/Kurt Hummel
Series: To Remember You [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1569970
Comments: 8
Kudos: 16





	1. Chapter 1

A/N: As stated in the original story To Remember You, Kurt and Blaine realized, that in every one of their past lifetimes, they had the same first name, but their last names had always been different, hence the different last names in this fic. This story is set in Russia in the 1700s. I am not Russian, nor do I speak Russian, google translate was my friend lol. Here are a few words I used and their translation.

moy mal’chik - My baby

otets – father

A/N Continued: I was asked to write a one-shot about the statue Blaine, and Kurt managed to get out of Russia. This is that story. I know long-distance train travel and sleeper cars weren’t really a thing at the time my story takes place, but this is AU, so a little artistic license has been taken. One other note, Kurt’s father in this story, is not the loveable Burt we are used to. I know I have multiple stories in progress right now. This one was supposed to be a quick 10-11k like my other one-shots. Instead, I threw 11 chapters at my beta at one time. This is mostly completed. I have roughly three more chapters to complete, and I have gotten four back from her so far. I will post the first four chapters, and then will go from there as she has time to complete them. I swear none of my stories have been abandoned, I will start work on them as soon as this one is completed. Thanks for your patients. TB.

Thank you to my amazing beta JayHawkWrites, for working your magic on this. You are much appreciated.

oOoOo

Thank you to PandasMom, for giving me the idea for this story, and then for your patients while waiting for me to write it, this is for you. 

oOoOo

To Remember You: To Russia With Love

**“ _All this time, I have been waiting to be found again, to be loved again, all this time waiting just for you._ ” _TB._**

~*~

Chapter 1

Blaine sat at his piano and instantly felt at peace. He and his father had just had the same argument they had had hundreds of times: marriage or military. Blaine wished he had another choice, but for a boy of his station, those were pretty much the only options available to him. His father, Mikhail, of course, had done both. He had fallen in love with Blaine’s mother, Polina, when Mikhail was all of sixteen years old. He had married her the day she turned seventeen.

Like his father before him, Mikhail had joined the military and had worked his way up in the ranks. He was now a Colonel-General and worked directly with Prince Aleksandr Menshikov. Mikhail had built a good life for himself and his family, and that is what Mikhail wanted for his only son. He wanted Blaine to find the love of a good woman and have the lifestyle stability he would only find with a military career.

Blaine loved his parents and always strived to make them proud. He always made top marks at the university the way his father wanted him to. When his mother had wanted him to learn to play the piano, Blaine sat down at the piano and taught himself how to play. In doing so he found his first love.

Blaine wanted everything his father wanted for him, too. He wanted to love as strongly as his parents did. He dreamed of marriage, to have that one person he could wake up with every morning and crawl into bed next to every night and love every second in between. He wanted a family of his own. Blaine wanted children that he would raise with the same love his parents had given him. But Blaine struggled, he knew the person he wanted and the life he dreamed of was nothing that would ever be available to him.

Blaine wanted the love he felt every night when he went to his bed and closed his eyes. His love was always there waiting for him, and even though it was just a dream and Blaine knew it. He felt so much for the lover that joined him in his dreams from the moment he drifted off to sleep.

Blaine had dreamed of ‘Kurt’ for the first time on the night of his seventeenth birthday. He had been walking through the square and the most beautiful person he had ever seen in his life had walked up to him. They never spoke a word that first night, but Blaine felt so much love. In his heart, he knew he would never be able to settle for anything less.

Since that first dream, Kurt had joined him every night while he slept. They would talk about things they had done, places they had seen, and the love they had made. The more he dreamed the more Blaine wanted to dream and the more he wanted the life he had with his Kurt in those dreams. They shared sweet hugs, hot and passionate kisses, and made sweet, sweet love.

When Blaine was younger, he always fought sleep, and the bedtime imposed on him by his parents. Now he could hardly wait to close his eyes and drift off because Blaine knew that behind his closed eyes, _his_ Kurt would be waiting for him.

“You know he only wants the best for you, right?” Polina said, sitting beside Blaine and wrapping her arm around his waist.

“I know, Mama, I do, it’s just…” Blaine said, leaning his head on his mom’s shoulder, feeling the love that was always present in her arms.

“It’s just what, moy mal’chik?” she asked, pulling him closer.

“I want love, Mama. I want what you and Papa have. I do, but…” Blaine couldn’t continue. How would he ever be able to explain to his mom what he so desperately wanted?

“But what, moy mal’chik? What is it, Blaine, that you are so afraid to say to me? I love you and there is not a single thing you will ever be able to say that will change that. Nothing will ever make me love you less,” she said, making Blaine look at her.

“Mama, I don’t think I like girls,” Blaine whispered so softly she was barely able to hear him and kept his head bowed so he wouldn’t have to see her disappointment in him.

“Oh, my precious Blaine. You are so much like my sweet brother Uil’yam. You never got to meet him, but you even look a little like him. He discovered the same thing about himself as you have. He was such a beautiful boy, so loving and caring. Our parents didn’t understand, and they pushed him away. My sweet brother left in the middle of the night, just after turning eighteen, and I never got to see him again.” Polina took a moment to calm herself before continuing. It broke her heart whenever she thought about her brother.

“Blaine, know that I will support you in this and that I will be there for you. But also know that your father never will be. He loves you, Blaine, you are his heart. Never doubt that for a second, but this is something he will never agree with. This is something he will never understand. Even though I hate to ask you to keep your precious secret from him, I know that that is for the best. I also know there might come a time when you will have to leave me, as my sweet Uil’yam did. If that time comes, if you feel you must leave, please come to me first,” Polina asked. “Please don’t leave me without saying goodbye. I will start holding money back for you so that you will be able to survive on your own should that time come and you feel you must leave me. I love you, moy mal'chik, please don’t ever forget that,” Polina said, placing a kiss on Blaine’s cheek and hugging him tight for a moment before she stood up and walked away.

Blaine sat on that piano bench, watching his mother as she left the room, feeling like a heavy weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. He always hated the thought of disappointing his parents, but if his mom had been disappointed in him, Blaine knew that would have killed his spirit. With a smile on his face, he started playing his mother's favorite song. He played it just for her, for the love she always gave him.

~*~

Kurt had had enough. He and his father seemed to fight now more than they got along. Every day it was the same argument. If he wasn’t going to marry the girls Al'bert introduced him to, then Kurt needed to accept the military commission that he kept offering, or more accurately, pushing on him. Kurt had heard the same thing over and over, day after day. He knows he is supposed to want these things. All of his friends had already made their decisions to either accept a marriage contract or had agreed to a commission. That wasn’t Kurt, though. He wasn’t military-minded and the thought of marrying one of the girls his father wanted him to left him feeling cold.

Kurt wanted a love he knew he could never have. He wanted the love of a boy that only existed in his dreams. He knew Blaine wasn’t real, but the love he felt for him was. When Kurt closed his eyes at night, Blaine was always there waiting on him and would stay with him until he opened his eyes the next morning. Every night he dreamed of his gorgeous Blaine, his friend, his confidant, his lover, his everything. They would spend their time together talking, laughing, loving, and exploring each other. Kurt could spend the rest of his life happily looking into that face, those eyes that promised so much. Unfortunately, he knows that can never happen. Even if Blaine were real, their love would never be allowed. For the hundredth time that week, Kurt wondered how he could ever explain to his father that not only was he already in love with someone but that that person only existed in his dreams.

With a sigh, Kurt sat down at his table and grabbed his chisel, hammer, and a new piece of wood. He had started crafting nesting dolls right after his mother passed away when he was eight. Kurt had been so heartbroken and had felt so alone during that time. He would spend days just sitting in her room, smelling the scent she wore, running his hands down her favorite dress, or curling up on her pillow and crying. His mom had been his best friend, and without her, he had felt so lost and terribly alone. Al'bert, fighting his own grief, was at a loss as to how to help his son with his. He started making Kurt leave the house to go outside and play and do the things he used to do before losing his mom. Kurt’s dad had taken him to a show in the square one day and Kurt had seen his first nesting doll and knew just how much his mom would have loved it.

“ _I want to make one for Mama_ ,” Kurt had said to his dad.

“ _But son, you don’t know how_ ,” Al'bert had said to his only child, not wanting to deny him anything.

“ _But Otets, I can learn. I want to learn_ ,” Kurt said with tears filling his little blue eyes that looked so much like his mothers. Al'bert couldn’t deny him. He bought him his first little hammer, chisel, knife, and wood that day, and it had gone from there.

Now, nine years later, Kurt sold his work and made a pretty good income from doing so. He saved every ruble he earned because Kurt never knew when he might finally need to leave. That thought scared him more than he’d like to admit. Kurt and his father might not see eye to eye on a lot of things, but Al'bert was all Kurt had left in this world, and the thought of being alone scared him. He didn’t know how to walk away from the only person he had left.

Kurt looked down at the wood in his hand and instantly knew what he wanted to create. He had been given a rough idea of what was wanted by his customers, and it was up to Kurt to bring that to life. He was crafting a set of nesting dolls and it would be the most important order he had ever completed. Kurt knew his father was standing behind him without even having to turn around. He put his chisel and the doll he was working on down and slowly turned around to face him.

“You know I only want what is best for you, right, son? You know that. You can’t keep spending your life making your dolls. At some point, you will have to grow up.” Al’bert said.

Kurt could hear the frustration in his father's voice, the frustration that was always there every time they had this same conversation. This wasn’t the first time they had had this argument. Not even the first time those words had been spoken today alone. “Otets, what if what you think is best for me isn’t what I feel is? And, how can you say I can’t make a living doing this when you know who this order is for?”

“Do you think orders like this one will come along every day, Kurt? Do you think there is always going to be someone willing to pay good rubles for a doll? It is time to grow up and act like the man you are supposed to be. I will give you two months Kurt. Two months for you to make your decision, or I will make one for you,” Al’bert said before turning around and storming out of the shop.

“ _Now what_?” Kurt thought as he signed and picked up his hammer and chisel, and continued with the doll he had started.

~*~

_“It’s time again, my sweet boy,” Blaine said, pulling Kurt just a little closer._

_“It’s time for what?” he asked in the sweetest voice Blaine had ever heard, and a knowing look in his beautiful eyes. Oh, how he missed that voice and those beautiful, beautiful blue eyes._

_“Why must you do this every time, Kurt? Why must you do this when you know how very much I need you in my arms again? How much I miss you? How much I want you? Find me, sweetheart. I am here, I am always right here,” Blaine said, pulling him close, wrapping one arm around his waist, and the other across his beautiful shoulders He needed to feel his warmth and his love again. Blaine slowly lowered his head so that their lips touched in the sweetest of kisses. That kiss was enough and nowhere near enough at the same time._

_“What would the fun be in making this go fast? One day, you know, you could always decide to come and find me,” he said with a laugh and that smile. That smile that Blaine loved so very much. That smile that transformed his whole face and had Blaine falling more and more in love._

_~*~_

Blaine woke up still feeling those lips on his skin, feeling that beautiful body in his arms. Even though he didn’t know this person outside of his dreams, somehow, Blaine felt like he did, and _he_ was missed. No, this wasn’t the first time Blaine had dreamed of Kurt. It wasn’t the first time he had held him in his arms, but this time had felt different from every other time before. Blaine had felt so much love for him, a love Blaine felt had always been there and just started at the same time. It was almost like Blaine recognized him in that instant, but how he didn’t know.

Kurt had joined Blaine in his dreams every night for a while now, but last night had been so much more. Blaine had _felt_ so much more. He had felt so much love for Kurt and for the first time in his life, Blaine felt he was loved by someone other than his parents. He just wished Kurt was real.

With a sigh, Blaine crawled out of his bed, knowing it was time to get his day started. His father would be downstairs waiting for him. Tonight Blaine was to play the piano for Prince Aleksandr Menshikov. The Menshikov Palace had just finished construction and the Prince was having a ball to introduce his people to the palace. Since Blaine’s father was Colonel-General, he, of course, had been invited. When asked if Mikhail knew of any entertainment that could be brought in he had mentioned Blaine.

Blaine’s father dreamed of his son following in his footsteps. Having a military career was an excellent career for a young man Mikhail always said. He even offered to buy Blaine a commission. He would start as a Junior Lieutenant and could work his way up the ranks as his father had and _his_ father and his father’s father before that. Blaine would be the next Andreyev to join the military ranks, and Mikhail waited patiently for that day to come.

Blaine, however, was a dreamer and had been his whole life. He dreamed of times where he didn’t have to hide what or who he was. Blaine wanted to live his life open and honest, but that just wasn’t a possibility. What he wanted he knew he could never have. Blaine longed for a love that transcended time. A love like his parents had. He knew that wouldn’t work for him. Even if he went along with the arrangement his father had wanted to make for him, Blaine knew he would never be able to love a wife. Unfortunately, the love Blaine now knew he needed would never, _could_ never be his.

Blaine had just turned seventeen, and he knew he would need to sign up for his commission soon. He didn’t look forward to it. Blaine wasn’t a military kind of person and honestly hated the thought of it, but he had no choice. His father was a Colonel-General and he was looking for his only son to follow in his footsteps. Hints were being dropped more and more often now that Blaine had turned down yet another marriage contract.

“ _Blaine, we want you to be happy, we want you to enjoy your life_ ,” his mother had said just last night, but she had looked at him with concern. She knew what was in his heart, but she also knew her husband wouldn’t be put off forever. Mikhail would eventually want Blaine’s decision, and her heart hurt for her son.

“ _I know, Mama, I know_ ,” Blaine had whispered back, looking into her eyes and seeing all the love she had for him. She would support him in all things, but he knew that when the time came, it would be his father who made the decisions, and neither one of them would be able to change his mind.

Blaine hated to disappoint his father, but if he did what his father wanted him to do, Blaine knew he would only disappoint himself. He knew his decision would need to be made soon. He knew he was running out of time. Soon his father would no longer ask. Demands would soon be made.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thanks as always to my amazing beta JayHawkWrites, for working through all the chapters I threw at her. You are the best.

~*~

_“It’s time again, my sweet boy,” he said, pulling Kurt just a little closer._

_“It’s time for what?” Kurt asked with a knowing smile on his face. Kurt knew what Blaine wanted, but it was always so much fun to tease him. It also kept him talking, and Kurt had missed that voice, that face, that smile that Blaine always had when he looked at Kurt, almost like he was the most precious thing in Blaine’s world. Kurt loved it when Blaine’s lips touched his and when he wrapped his strong arms around him._

_“You know one day, you could always come and find me,” Kurt said, laughing and then running away, looking over his shoulder, knowing Blaine would follow him. After all, Blaine always did._

~*~

When Kurt woke up, he could still feel Blaine’s lips on his. He could still feel those strong arms wrapped around him, loving Kurt as he had never been loved before. They had a close connection while in their dreams. There was a love and a friendship that Kurt had never felt while awake. Last night’s dream had seemed different somehow. The love he had felt for Blaine had been so much stronger than ever before and he missed that; Kurt missed _him_.

Kurt dreamed of a day when he would find that kind of a connection with a real person. He knew his father was ready for him to settle down and find a suitable mate, but the girls his father thought would be suitable for Kurt weren’t suitable for him. He had tried to be interested in the girls, he really had, but with every girl he had taken out, there had been nothing there, no connection whatsoever. Not that they weren’t lovely enough, they were just not right for him.

He knows he will need to make a decision soon. A wife or a commission, those were the choices he had been given. How did he tell his military-minded father that he didn’t want either? He wanted what he saw in his dreams, Kurt wanted Blaine. He knows Blaine isn’t real, but what he feels in his heart is. How do you miss someone you don’t know, someone you have never met? How does Kurt give up on the love he felt for someone that only existed in his dreams?

Kurt slipped out of his bed, went to his dressing room, and then started getting ready for his day. He needed to finish the nesting dolls he was crafting for Prince Aleksandr Menshikov. There was a ball being held at the Palace tonight. Kurt had been commissioned by Princess Daria to create a personalized nesting doll for the prince. He had once seen some of Kurt’s work and had mentioned liking them to the Princess. Kurt had all the carving and most of the painting done, it just needed one more coat of paint put on, and it would be ready for tonight. Kurt was proud of the work he was doing. He was proud that the Prince had seen and liked his work, and that it would be put on display at the Palace for all to see.

~*~

Blaine was nervous, and he had been all day. He had practiced what he planned on performing tonight until his fingers were sore. Blaine had played for large groups of people before and had never felt like this, but this would be the first time he would be playing for someone as important as the Prince, someone who was so important to his father. Not only would Blaine be performing for royalty, but he would also be performing at the Palace for hundreds of men and women of Saint Petersburg. Blaine could tell by looking at his father how proud Mikhail was of his son. He would be the first person to ever perform at the new Palace, and he was going to be playing for the Prince himself, someone that Mikhail Andreyev looked up to and admired.

Blaine opted to ride his horse to the Palace that night instead of riding with his parents in their carriage. He figured that way, if he was ready to leave before they were, he wouldn’t have to wait on them. Blaine also rode because he loved it. He loved riding Pavarotti and letting him fly over the roads, but tonight he was uncomfortable. Not because he was riding his horse, no Blaine was uncomfortable because he couldn’t ride him like he usually did. Tonight he had to reign Pavorotti in and keep him walking at a canter that matched the speed of his parent’s carriage in front of him.

Blaine was also uncomfortable because of the way he was dressed. He hated dressing up and wearing flashy clothes in bright colors. He preferred his day to day clothes, but his father had forced him to buy a new habit for tonight’s ball. His outfit had also been picked out by his father, something else Blaine hated. His father had chosen for his waistcoat, vest, and knee-breeches to be fashioned out of gold silk, with red silk embroidery. Blaine hated the silks and satins that the courts deemed fashionable for young men to wear. He much preferred wearing linens, cotton, or wool, but his father always said they were below his station. Blaine hated the way silk felt but was forced to wear it.

Blaine hated the colors that had been chosen for him as well. He preferred, blacks, browns or grays, but tonight he hadn’t been given a choice, tonight he wore gold. Blaine couldn’t figure out today’s fashions. Why do men wear knee-breeches when they are going to cover their legs with stockings anyway. If legs weren’t meant to be seen, then why wear knee-breeches at all? Why not just wear long pants? Today’s fashion, to Blaine, made absolutely no sense, but he was forced to go along with it because of his position in society. On top of this, he also had to deal with his hair being slicked back so that not a single curl escaped. It was then pulled back and tied at the nape of his neck with a ribbon that matched the gold of his silk waistcoat. Worst of all, he had to deal with his hair being powdered since he hated wearing a wig. The powder itched his scalp, so once again, Blaine was uncomfortable. He would be glad when this night was over he thought to himself as he saw the gates of the Palace come into view.

Blaine and his family were the first to arrive, a fact his mother hated. She always liked to make a grand entrance that was seen by many, but this time there was no other way around it. Since Blaine was in charge of the music for the ball, it had been requested that he arrive early. Blaine walked over to the piano and fell in love with the instrument. It was brand new and Blaine could tell by looking at the keys that it was unplayed. He sat down on the piano bench, ran his fingers across the keys, and was glad he had agreed to play tonight. The sound coming from this piano was like none he had ever heard. He was in heaven. Music had always been his true passion, his one true love. If given a chance, Blaine would spend his life just playing and teaching others how to play, but once again, that kind of profession was beneath his social standing and it didn’t matter that it would make him happy, he would never be allowed to do it.

As Blaine played, the room started filling up and dancers spun around the room, all dressed in their finest. He was so lost in the music he played that Blaine didn’t pay attention to the people coming into the ballroom, he was in his own world. Blaine was in the middle of playing Vivaldi when he felt a tingle run down his spine, not missing a note, he started looking around, and that is when Blaine saw _him,_ knowing him and not knowing him at the same time. Blaine watched _him_ , moving from group to group with a smile on his lips. He recognized that smile, but how was that possible. _He_ wasn’t real. Blaine continued to watch him, feeling his heart swell, feeling love for _him_ overwhelm him.

He was dressed similar to Blaine, only where Blaine wore gold, he was in blue. Even from this distance and not being able to see his eyes, Blaine somehow knew his habit would match his eyes perfectly and would make them appear even more beautiful. Blaine had to fight himself to sit still and keep playing. He felt a strong need to walk over to his love and pull him into his embrace and cover his face with kisses, to whisper in his ear ‘ _finally_.’ Blaine didn’t know where that need came from, but it took everything in him to keep fighting it and stay seated at the piano. He didn’t know him. He just resembled someone from his dreams, someone that wasn’t real, someone who could never be to Blaine what _Kurt_ was to him. With a resigned sigh, he looked back down at the piano keys. He continued playing, launching into his favorite Handel composition, feeling a sense of sadness wash over him as he had never felt before. Now, more than ever, Blaine was ready for this night to be over.

~*~

When Kurt walked into the room, the first thing he saw was _him_. _Him_ , sitting behind the piano. The music he was playing was more beautiful than Kurt had ever thought possible. He seemed so familiar, but Kurt knew he had never met him before. Kurt’s eyes kept being drawn back to him. He felt his heart start beating faster. He looked so much like the boy Kurt loved from his dreams, because yes he did love Blaine. Kurt ached to find a way to be with Blaine, so much that Kurt almost cried. He was the most beautiful boy Kurt has ever seen. He felt a need to run up to him, pull him close, and whisper, ‘ _I found you, I finally found you_.’ That need for Kurt was so strong it took everything in him to keep his feet from walking across the floor to him.

He played beautifully but kept his head downcast. Kurt wanted to yell across the room, ‘ _look up_.’ He wanted to see his face. Almost as if he heard Kurt’s thoughts, the boy looked up. The boy playing the piano looked straight at him, and he took Kurt’s breath away. For a split second, he looked at Kurt like he was the most precious thing in the world to him, just like he had done so many times in Kurt’s dreams. But then he looked back down, and Kurt felt an ache in his chest like he had never felt before.

Kurt spent the rest of his night moving from one group to another, but he kept looking back at _him_ every chance he could. Around ten, Kurt was taken and introduced to the Prince himself. Kurt was amazed by all the wonderful things he kept saying about his work. On the spot, the Prince commissioned a set of nesting dolls for his brother, Antoin, who lived in Novosibirsk. Kurt was so proud that the Prince had liked his work enough to order another one, and he knew his father would be as well. Kurt could hardly wait to see his face when he told him.

With a smile on his face, Kurt walked back into the ballroom, intent on finding his father, and share his good news. It was at that moment that Kurt noticed how quiet the room now was. The piano had grown silent and the beautiful boy who had been playing it was no longer there. Kurt wanted to cry. He had hoped to meet him, talk to him. Kurt knew it wasn’t the boy from his dreams. He knew this in his head, but his heart was another matter altogether. The joy in his interaction with the Prince had brought him vanished. Kurt was ready to go home.


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks as always to my beta, for working through everything with me. You’re the best.

~*~

Blaine rode slowly home, his heart hurting. One moment _he_ had been there, the next Blaine had looked up, and he had vanished, almost as if he had never been there at all. When Blaine finished the last song he was requested to play for the night, he had asked several people if they knew him or had seen where he had gone. Blaine lied and said that they were old friends and hadn’t seen each other in a while. No one Blaine talked to knew who _he_ was or where _he_ had gone. _He_ had just disappeared, _he_ had gone, and a piece of Blaine felt like it had left with him. Blaine found his parents and told them he was going home, complaining of a headache.

Usually, riding Pavarotti made Blaine feel better when things had gone wrong for him. When life sometimes became too much, he would ride and all would be right with his world again. Tonight, however, that didn’t work. Blaine just kept wondering how he could miss someone he didn’t know, someone he had never met, but worst of all, someone who wasn’t real. Blaine finally made it to his home and only had enough energy to strip off his clothes and climb into his bed, wanting so badly to cry for the first time in years. He prayed sleep would take him soon so he could be back in Kurt’s arms again, even if only in his dreams.

~*~

_“Why did you walk away from me? You’ve never done that before. Did I upset you somehow?” Blaine asked, sadly looking at his love._

_“I didn’t walk away from you. I never could or would. I love you. Why didn’t you come to me? I kept waiting for you to. You were right there and didn’t come to me. That has never happened before. Were you upset with ‘me’?” Kurt asked, tears running down his face._

_“No, my sweet boy, I could never be upset with you. I’ll love you from now to eternity, from the beginning of our times to the very end of forever. We’ll get there, we always do. Patience, my love. We just need to allow ourselves more time,” Blaine said, placing light kisses on Kurt’s soft lips, wrapping his arms around Kurt’s waist and holding him as tight as he could. “Oh, how very much I miss you. Why does this part always seem to take so very long? Come to me, sweetheart, find me again.”_

~*~

Blaine woke up with tears in his eyes and an ache in his chest as he had never felt before. That dream had seemed so very real, as did the love he had felt for Kurt. It broke Blaine’s heart to see Kurt cry like that. He had wanted to pull Kurt into his arms and hold him until the tears stopped, and the laughter and smiles returned. Blaine wanted to show Kurt how much he missed him, loved him.

With a sigh, Blaine got out of bed and started getting ready for his day. He needed to talk to his parents this morning. Last night at the ball, Princess Daria had come to him requesting that he play the piano for her at a luncheon she was hosting in two weeks. Blaine had, of course, jumped at the chance and quickly agreed with her request. That is until she advised Blaine she wanted to pay him for his time. Blaine knew his father would never allow him to accept payment for performing for the Princess. Blaine had told her he would happily play for her at any function she might want him to, but he couldn’t accept payment from her for doing so. She had just looked at him with a soft smile on her face.

“ _Blaine, your time is too precious and your gift too amazing. I cannot let you spend your time and not get compensated for it. I tried as a young girl to learn how to play and never could. I can only imagine how long it took you to get as good as you are. How many hours you must have practiced, just for tonight’s performance alone. Your gift is too impressive just to be given away to me or anyone else. I could make this a royal decree if need be, but I would hope that wouldn’t be necessary,”_ she had said, handing him a pouch of coins and refused to take it back. She had turned her back on Blaine and walked away. When he had gotten home, he had seen more ruble’s in that sack than he could earn in a month doing any other profession, even in the military career his father wanted him to pursue.

Before going to talk to his parents, Blaine quickly cleaned up, taking the time to wash the gel and powder out of his hair. Blaine hadn’t done so last night. He had felt an overwhelming need to crawl into bed and fall asleep as quickly as possible, wanting desperately to be back with Kurt again. He had needed to have him back in his arms again, especially after what had happened at the ball.

Blaine took extra time choosing an outfit for today. He had a two-fold reason for doing so. He was trying to put off the conversation Blaine knew he needed to have with his father about last night just a little longer. He also needed to pick an outfit that his father wouldn’t have an issue with. Mikhail seemed to not agree with a lot of Blaine’s clothing choices, hence him picking out Blaine’s outfit for last night's ball. When he was dressed and couldn’t put it off any longer, Blaine went to talk to his parents. He stopped for a moment at the door, took a deep breath, and then walked into the kitchen. The first thing Blaine heard was his parents talking about his performance last night. They smiled when he walked in, very proud of their son.

“Mama, Otets, may I speak to you?” Blaine asked, feeling almost as nervous as he had the night before when he was heading to the Palace.

“Of course you can, son. What do you need?” his mama asked him, walking over to hug him before placing a plate of food on the table in front of his usual seat, motioning for him to sit down.

Blaine sat down in his seat and took a deep breath before looking at his parents. “Last night, after I finished playing, Princess Daria came to talk to me, she…”

“Blaine, what was wrong? Did she not like your playing? You were wonderful last night. I don’t understand,” his father said, standing up and starting to pace the kitchen.

“No Otets, she was pleased. She asked me to perform at a luncheon she will be hosting in two weeks. She also told me that she would like me to play for any future gatherings she may have,” Blaine answered.

“But that is wonderful, son. Why do you look so nervous?” his mother asked, a proud smile on her face.

Blaine looked between his parents, “Princess Daria, wants to pay me,” Blaine got out before his father interrupted him again.

“No! You cannot accept money from the Princess. you’ll play for her, but you’ll do it for free. How would that look if I allowed my son to accept money? No, you must refuse. You must tell her no,” Mikhail said, pacing the room again.

“Otets, the Princess has requested that I play for her, but she said that she wouldn’t allow me to play if I refuse payment. She even commented on speaking to the Prince if I refused,” Blaine answered, looking at his father. “She slipped me coins last night and refused to take them back. She said that they were for me for the time I must have spent practicing for last night’s ball, and for playing for her. The Princess said she would have paid anyone else, why shouldn’t she pay me?”

“I refuse to let you, Blaine, I refuse to let you take coins from her,” his father said, before turning on his heels and walking out the door.

“What do I do, Mama? How do I tell Princess Daria? How do I refuse her?” Blaine asked.

“You don’t, Blaine. I’m sure that the Prince knows about this and will speak to your father. From what I hear, the Prince won’t deny the Princess anything,” his mom said, placing a kiss on his cheek.

~*~

_“Why do you think I would ever walk away from you? I never have, and I never will. Why didn’t you come to me, Blaine? I was right there across the room from you. How could you not come to me? You have never done that before. You have always come to me. Were you upset with me? Did I do something wrong?”_

_“No, my sweet boy, I could never be upset with you. I’ll love you from now to eternity, from the beginning of our times to the very end of forever. We’ll get there, we always do. Patience, my love. We just need to allow ourselves more time.”_

_Kurt broke down, but Blaine pulled him closer to him, hugging him so tight, and kissing his sadness away. “I miss you so much,” Kurt whispered into Blaine’s ear._

_“Oh, how very much I miss you, too. Why does this part always seem to take so very long? Come to me, sweetheart, find me again,” Blaine answered back, pulling Kurt even closer. Kurt wrapped his arms around Blaine’s neck, leaning in for another kiss, needing to feel his love just a little longer._

_~*~_

Kurt woke up with tears in his eyes, and what felt like a hole in his heart. If he didn’t know none of it was real, that it had all just been a dream, it would have left him broken beyond repair, and he knows it. What had Blaine meant by ‘ _We’ll get there, we always do_ ’? Kurt felt like he had lived this life before, had that dream, that conversation before, and yet it all felt so new. He sometimes felt like he was losing his mind.

Kurt slowly crawled out of bed. He had so much he needed to do today. Kurt needed to go to his supplier and purchase more balsa wood and paint so he could start working on the nesting dolls the Prince wanted for his brother. Kurt had been on such a high last night hearing the words the Prince had said about his work, that he had said he would have the doll ready in two weeks. It was only after Kurt found his dad and told him he was ready to go home that it hit him precisely what he had promised and to whom. Kurt had to make sure this order was done on time, even if he had to put off other orders that he already had waiting. The prince’s order would be his top priority.

Kurt got dressed and went looking for his dad. He found him in the kitchen finishing up his breakfast. As usual, Al’bert hadn’t thought to make Kurt anything, even though on days when Kurt was up first he always fixed enough for his dad.

Kurt walked over to the stove and was thankful his father had at least left him coffee. He would just get something to eat while he was at the market today. “I meant to tell you last night that the Prince liked the nesting doll I made for him and ordered one for his brother, Antoin, who lives in Novosibirsk. I need to go to the market this morning and get the supplies I will need for it,” Kurt said smiling, expecting his dad to be proud of him.

“Don’t forget what I said, Kurt. I don’t care if the Prince orders hundreds of those stupid dolls. I still only give you two months to make your decision,” Al’bert said, turning around and walking out.

Kurt watched in shock his dad walk out the door. His dad had changed since he lost his military rank and had been busted down to a Second Lieutenant. Kurt still hasn’t figured out how that was _his_ fault. Al’bert was the one who got drunk and got in a fight with the Colonel. Al’bert was the one that had been caught in bed with said Colonel’s wife. He was just lucky the Colonel hadn't killed him or had him kicked out of the military altogether. Kurt had still been surprised when his dad had been invited to the palace. With everything Al’bert had been accused of, Kurt had just been surprised when the invitation had been received, but even more, surprised his dad had accepted it.

Kurt shook his head, watching as his dad walked down the walkway towards his waiting horse. Kurt wonders for the hundredth time what had happened between him and his father. They used to be close. Now Kurt never knows from one moment to the next which ‘dad’ he would face. Before the ball, his dad had said, “ _I only want what is best for you,_ ” and the next day Al’bert is threatening Kurt. Kurt knows he is running out of time and needs to decide where he needs to go. Hopefully, he will be able to get a few more orders done before the time came when he would need to leave.

With a sigh, Kurt walked around back and waited for his horse and carriage to be readied. He usually just rode his horse, but since he had some things to pick up, he knew he would need his carriage. Slowly making his way towards the square, Kurt thought about the ball, reliving every moment from the time he walked in that room. Kurt couldn’t stop thinking about those eyes looking at him, feeling so much love from them, and feeling cherished with just a glance. If only that could have been real, and that look meant for him.

Kurt went to his supplier and was glad they had the wood he needed was there. He had ordered it three weeks ago, and when Kurt checked last week, he had been told it hadn’t been delivered yet. Kurt would use the wood he picked up today for the prince’s order. While he was there he placed another wood order to replace what he would use now. That way when he was done with the doll for the prince’s brother, he could just start on the orders he already had. Once his wood order was placed, Kurt carried his supplies to his carriage and went to his shop. He unloaded the carriage so he could get started right away.

Kurt had been in his current shop for just over three months. He had initially worked out a room in his house, but his father complained almost daily about the dust his carving created in the house. Kurt had always used one of the back rooms with the windows up to keep down on the dust, but his dad still complained. It didn’t matter that Kurt was the one who was in charge of keeping the house clean, his father wouldn’t stop complaining about the dust until Kurt opened his shop and started working from there. Kurt often wonders if his father's complaints had been meant to force Kurt to make a decision he wasn’t ready to make yet, and Kurt honestly felt that Al’bert hadn’t expected Kurt to be able to make a go of it. He wondered if his father was expecting him to fail and come crawling back.

Kurt’s business had not only done well but was flourishing. With his shop being in the square and not in the back room of his home, more people saw his shop and would stop in. Kurt always had orders coming in and most of the time more than he could keep up with. In his downtime, when he didn’t have a lot of orders he needed to fill, Kurt would carve the main structure of a doll so that he could have a head start when the next order came in. All Kurt would need to do would be to paint it the way the customer requested.


	4. Chapter 4

Over the next week, Blaine spent a lot of time at the Palace working with Princess Daria. They went over the different songs she wanted him to perform. Over time, they became friends as they talked about all of the different things they both liked. Since she had moved to Saint Petersburg, the Princess had no one to talk to other than the Prince, and since he was always busy she spent a lot of time alone.

The Princess felt comfortable talking with Blaine about numerous things and talked to him about her previous home in Rome. She talked to him about the beautiful buildings, artwork, and museums, sometimes describing it so well that Blaine could almost see it. They had a connection and had started a friendship of sorts, or so Blaine thought. When he walked into the room he usually met Princess Daria in that morning, he was surprised to see that she acted stiff and very formal with him. She advised him that the Prince requested an audience with him.

Blaine started running through his mind everything he had said or done over the last week, trying to figure out what he might have done wrong. Princess Daria had never acted formally around him, not even the first day they met. Blaine started worrying that she had somehow figured out his secret. How, though, he didn’t know.

“The Prince is waiting for you,” Daria said as a servant opened the door leading to the Prince’s private study. Blaine followed her in and was shocked to see his father standing behind the Prince, his hands behind his back, looking at Blaine with concern.

Blaine walked forward, bowing before the Prince. “Your Royal Highness.”

“Blaine, I have had some disturbing news from Princess Daria this morning. She said she asked something of you, and that you refused her,” the Prince said, looking at Blaine before standing up and walking over to him.

“Blaine, what have you done?” Mikhail started, looking at his son with surprise and anger, only to be silenced by the Prince holding up his hand.

“It would seem that my Princess wanted you to play for her for a few events, and you have refused her,” the Prince said, checking with his wife to make sure he relayed the message correctly.

“By your leave, Your Majesty, I would never refuse the Princess’s request. I have been working with her all week to find out what all I should play during said events,” Blaine answered, looking at Princess Daria, now even more confused.

“This is true, my husband. Blaine has been working with me, and he didn’t refuse to play per se, he just refused to accept payment for doing so. I advised him after the ball last week that I couldn’t allow him to play at my functions if he didn’t allow me to pay him for his time. Yesterday, Blaine once again refused payment. Therefore, as far as I’m concerned, he refused me,” the Princess said, looking at her husband for a moment before flashing an ‘I win’ smile to Blaine. He almost busted out laughing, trying to remember his etiquette against doing such a thing.

“Colonel-General Mikhail, have you never instructed your son on how he should act with royalty? Especially before you allowed him to perform at one of my functions,” the Prince said, winking at Blaine before turning to his father.

“Of course I did, Your Majesty,” Mikhail said at a loss. He knew he was the reason that Blaine had refused payment.

“I guess this issue is resolved then. Blaine, you will accept payment for your time; whatever my Princess feels is correct. I don’t want her to come back to me with this issue again, are we clear?” the Prince asked Blaine once again, no anger in his face. The Prince knew that the reason Blaine wouldn’t accept payment was because Mikhail refused to let him. Now that Mikhail knows that his son has no choice he will no longer let his son refuse.

“Now that that’s settled, Blaine, if you will follow me? We will allow my husband and your father to get back to work,” the Princess said before walking over to Prince Aleksandr and placed a kiss on his cheek. Before she turned to walk out of the room, she gave her husband a small curtsy. Blaine bowed to his Prince, nodded his head at his father, and followed the Princess out.

“One thing you will learn about me quickly, Blaine, is that I will always win. My mother used to have the hardest time with me, and to be honest, marriage and age haven’t changed that. Now, I thought about adding a Beethoven song to our list for next week, if you think you have...” the Princess stopped talking when she saw the look on Blaine’s face.

Blaine walked up to the piano and noticed something new sitting there. He slowly picked it up, feeling a tingle running down his spine, knowing he had seen something like it before, but not remembering where. It was the most beautiful set of nesting dolls he had ever seen in his life.

“May I ask where these came from? My mom would love them, and her birthday is coming up next month,” Blaine asked, setting the doll gently back down on the piano. What Blaine said was true, his mother would love them, but it wasn’t just that. When he had picked up the doll he had felt something. Blaine instantly knew he had seen them before, and he doesn’t know why, but he feels like they should mean something to him. What, though, he didn’t know.

“I ordered the doll for the Prince, from a young man in the square. The business name is Elizabet's. I know the Prince fell in love with it and has commissioned the young man to make a set for his brother, Antoin.

“Thank you, Princess. I might stop on my way home and check. Now, you said you wanted to add another Beethoven to your list for next week?” Blaine asked, trying to get back on track. He still had a lot to do before heading home. Today couldn’t be over fast enough. Now that he had somewhere he desperately felt like he needed to be.

~*~

Kurt was in the back room of his shop when he heard the bell ding over the door. “I’ll be right with you,” Kurt said, setting the doll he had just finished on a shelf as far away from his work area as he could in hopes the placement would keep the dust off of it until the fresh paint had time to dry.

Blaine took his time looking around the room. He saw so many different dolls scattered around, all beautiful and all completely different. Blaine had just finished thinking how gifted the sculptor was when he heard that voice. That was the voice from his dreams, the voice he could spend the rest of his life listening too, the voice of his love. When he heard footsteps behind him, Blaine took a deep breath before slowly turning around and found himself looking into the face he loved more than life itself. And at that moment, he finally felt like he was home.

Blaine didn’t know who moved first, but before he could process anything they were in each other's arms, and he was sharing his very first kiss with the only person he knew he was ever meant to kiss. Blaine felt to his core that the person he was holding in his arms was the only person he was ever meant to hold, to love, and to be loved by. Neither one ever wanted to let go. They just held each other tight, sharing sweet kisses and soft whispered words. Blaine pulled back just far enough that he could look into the face of the person he somehow knew he could never get enough of.

“You said this time that _I_ could always decide to come and find _you…_ This time I did,” Blaine whispered, raising his hand to cup the face of the person he knew in his heart was Kurt. Blaine had thought he was beautiful before, but nothing compared to what was standing in front of him now.

“What took you so long?” Kurt asked with a soft smile on his face, before stepping back and shaking his head. “How is this even possible? You aren’t real. I am losing my mind,” Kurt said before sitting down on the floor, placing his head in his hands and breaking down, his body shaking from his tears.

“If you are losing your mind, sweetheart, then trust me, I am right there with you,” Blaine whispered back, kneeling in front of Kurt and wrapping his arms around him again.

“I don’t understand any of this. You’re just a dream. You aren’t real,” Kurt whispered, raising his tear-stained face so he could look him in the eye of the one he loved.

“Oh, my sweet boy. I am so very real, and oh so happy to have you back in my arms again,” Blaine said without really understanding why. He didn’t understand this any more than Kurt did if this man was, in fact, Kurt. This was all too crazy to be real.

“How do I know you? I feel like I have known you forever, and know nothing about you at the same time. The only thing I know about you is from my dre…” Kurt stopped himself, realizing just how crazy he must really sound.

“Your dreams?” Blaine said with a smile spreading across his face. “Since we are both still so unsure, I think it is time for introductions. My name is Blaine, and you joined me in my dreams on my seventeenth birthday. You have been in my dreams every night since. I know your name is Kurt. I don’t know how I know this, but I do.”

The biggest smile spread across Kurt’s face as he looked at Blaine. It _was_ him! He was real and he was sitting in front of him, right where Kurt wanted him to be forever. “My name is Kurt. You joined _me_ in my dreams also on my seventeenth birthday and you stole my breath away, just as you have every single night since.”

Blaine sat back a little and crossed his legs, getting comfortable, not moving far away. He never wanted to be away from Kurt again. He felt like he had traveled hundreds of years to get to this time and place.

“I still don’t understand. How do I know you? Up until now we have never met, but I know you. How is this even possible?” Kurt asked, still so confused.

“I’m not sure, but I feel the same. On the night of my birthday, you were there. You walked up to me in this very square. We didn’t talk that night, but from that night on you’ve joined my dreams. I felt like I had known you my whole life and when I have had a bad day you’re there, and you always make me feel better,” Blaine answered, still feeling as confused as Kurt, but still so happy to have found him.

“Can I ask how you ended up playing at the palace for the Prince?” Kurt asked.

“So, that _was_ you _.._. I saw you when you first entered the room, and I couldn’t keep my eyes off of you. It took everything in me to stay where I was and to keep playing. I wanted to stand up, pull you in my arms, and kiss you like I have done so many times in my dreams,” Blaine said with a soft smile as he looked into Kurt’s eyes.

“I felt the same. The first time I saw you, you had your head down and were looking at the keys of the piano. I just wanted to yell across the room, ‘ _look up.’_ I also had this urge to walk up to you, pull you into my arms, and whisper in your ear, ‘ _I found you, I finally found you_.’ I had to go meet with the Prince at some point during the evening. When I left his office I had finally built up enough courage to come to you, only to find you had already disappeared,” Kurt said.

“I had finished playing what the Princess had asked me to play. I went looking for you and you were just gone. I walked around asking everyone if they knew who you were or if they knew where you had gone. No one did. I felt heartbroken. One minute you were right there, right there in front of me, and then you were gone. I was afraid I had lost you forever. I couldn’t wait to go home, crawl into bed, and hope you would join me there again, and thank the lord you did,” Blaine said, leaning over to kiss Kurt, needing to feel his lips under his again.

“How did you end up playing for the Princess?” Kurt asked.

“Oh yeah, sorry,” Blaine said with a smile. “My dad works directly for the Prince. When they were getting things organized for the ball, the Prince asked my dad if he knew anyone who played. My dad, of course, volunteered me. I played that night, and since then, the Princess herself has asked me to perform for her at a luncheon she has scheduled, and a few other things she has planned.”

“That is actually how I found you. I was at the palace this morning, getting ready to go over the list of songs the Princess wanted me to play for her when I saw the dolls sitting on the piano. They had never been there before. My first thought was how beautiful they were, and that they were something my mom would like. I walked over to them, picked them up, and I felt something I can't explain. I felt like I had seen them before, but couldn’t figure out where. Then it hit me. I saw the doll in one of my dreams. I joined you one night here in your shop and the doll was sitting in that corner,” Blaine said, pointing to the opposite side of the room.

“How could you possibly know where I kept them before I passed them on to the Prince?” Kurt asked, feeling more confused every moment that passed.

“As I said, I saw them in one of my dreams. I know how crazy that must sound to you, but I was here in your shop and saw them as clearly as I see those around me,” Blaine answered, motioning around the room.

“I remember having a dream one night where you came into the shop. It was just a few weeks ago. I remember it was the first time in my dreams we ever...” Kurt stopped talking, moving his hand up and covering his mouth. He could feel himself starting to turn red. He had almost said that was the first night they had made love. It had been so beautiful that Kurt remembers waking up with tears in his eyes.

Blaine looked at Kurt, feeling a warmth spread through his body. If Kurt was talking about the same night that Blaine remembered, they had made love that night and it had been magical, and so much better than he could have ever hoped for. “I think I know what night you’re talking about.”

“Did we…?” Kurt asked, his face turning even redder

“Oh yes, my sweet boy. Yes we did,” Blaine whispered, shifting up to his knees, pulling Kurt up and into his waiting arms and kissing those sweet lips that Blaine was quickly becoming addicted to. Blaine now knew what Kurt tasted like and he knew he would never get enough of that taste.

They slowly pulled apart and looked at each other as they sat back down on the floor. “What do you think it all means? I have seen so many things in my dreams. It’s almost like I have lived in different places and at different times. I know that sounds crazy, but that is how I feel,” Kurt said, looking more confused than ever before.

“I know what you mean. I know I have dreamed of different countries, and what seemed like different times, but no matter when or where I was, you were always right there beside me. I remember this one time…” Blaine started to say when the bell over Kurt’s shop door rang, signaling that they were no longer alone. Blaine had been so lost with what was going on with Kurt, he hadn’t realized how much time had passed. His mother was going to be worried as he was usually home well before now.

“Sorry, I need to see to this,” Kurt said, smiling standing up.

“That’s ok. I need to head home anyway. Can I come back tomorrow?” Blaine asked, hopefully. Now that he had met Kurt, he couldn’t think of anything but being with him.

“I was hoping you would,” Kurt said with a soft smile, watching as Blaine turned around and walked out his door.

“Hi, how may I help you?” Kurt asks the customer who came into his shop.


	5. Chapter 5

“I found him, Mama,” Blaine said with the biggest smile on his face as he walked into the kitchen where his mom was making dinner.

“You found who, moy mal’chik?” Polina asked, turning around to look at her son.

“I found the person I’m meant to be with,” Blaine said, smiling even more.

“May I assume that is why you were late finding your way home?” She asked, raising her left eyebrow and looking at Blaine the way only a mother could.

“I’m sorry, Mama. I didn’t realize how late I was,” Blaine said, giving his mom the smile he knew had always gotten him out of the trouble he had always managed to get himself in.

“I’m just messing with you, moy mal’chik. I’m happy for you. Tell me about him,” Polina asked with a look of happiness on her face, realizing just how happy Blaine was.

“Mama, he is wonderful. He is tall with the most beautiful blue eyes I have ever seen. He has a really great sense of humor and so very easy to talk to. I could see myself spending hours just talking to him,” Blaine said with a happy sigh, smiling and thinking about Kurt and the kisses they had shared less than an hour ago. Blaine knew he was ready for more.

“How do you know him?” Polina asked the question Blaine didn’t have an answer for. How did he tell his mom that he and Kurt had met in their dreams, that they spent every moment they were asleep with each other? She would think he had lost his mind, so he said the only thing he could.

“I saw him the first time at the palace while I was playing. I didn’t get a chance to talk to him, and to be honest, I was a little unhappy because I felt like I had lost my chance. Today when I was working with Princess Daria, I saw a set of nesting dolls on the piano that were the best I had ever seen. Mom, if you could see the artwork on this thing, you would have been amazed. When I asked the Princess where they came from, she had said she ordered them from a little shop in the square. I knew right away that they were something you would be interested in, and since your birthday is coming up next month, I thought I would go in and see what else they had.” Blaine took a moment to breathe before continuing on with his story.

“When I walked in, Mama, I was floored. I couldn’t believe the detail he had put into every single doll. There had to be dozens of them around the shop, and every single one of them was different. There wasn’t going to be a problem with finding a good one. The problem was going to be in trying to pick between them. Anyway, I was looking around and out he came from the back room, and I saw him for the first time…” Blaine said with a far off look on his face. In that instant, Polina knew her baby boy was already halfway in love. She only wished this would be easy for him.

“So, when can I expect to meet him?” Polina asked, walking over to stir the stew she was cooking for their dinner that night.

“I promise, Mama, once I get to know him better I’ll be happy to introduce the two of you,” Blaine said with a grin, happy with the way his mom had taken his news. She seemed genuinely happy for him, but he could also see the concern in her eyes that she tried so hard to hide.

“I look forward to meeting the person that can put that smile on your beautiful face, moy mal’chik. Now, go change your clothes and play me some music while I finish making our supper,” Polina said, with a soft smile, placing a kiss on her baby boy's cheek. When had he grown up, she wonders? It felt like just yesterday he had learned to walk, and now before too long, she knew he would be walking away from her. Polina knew she should be happy for him, but she does so worry about how his life was going to be. She had gotten a few random letters from Uil’yam over the years since he had left, enough to know that not everything had worked out the way he had hoped they would, and she hadn’t gotten any letters from him in over a year. Polina just hopes that she doesn’t lose her Blaine the same way, knowing in her heart though, that she would. With a sigh, she continued stirring the soup, humming along with the beautiful music her son was making just for her.

~*~

Kurt couldn’t keep the smile off of his face as he rode home in his carriage. He still couldn’t believe that someone as beautiful as Blaine not only existed, but that he had met him, found him, and seemed to feel the same way about Kurt that Kurt felt about him. Kurt knew he could get lost looking into Blaine’s warm honey-hazel eyes, and he was fascinated by Blaine’s almost triangular eyebrows. Blaine had the kind of face that could stop someone in their tracks. His eyes were so expressive, and after talking to Blaine tonight, Kurt knew that not only was Blaine beautiful on the outside, he also had a beautiful soul. Blaine’s smile could stop Kurt’s heart and start it beating a hundred miles a minute at the same time. Kurt felt like he had finally found what he had been looking for his whole life. Blaine felt like home.

By the time Kurt arrived at his home, it was already dark. Since he and his father were arguing so much, Kurt opted to stay at the shop later than he normally would so there would be less chance of arguing. Kurt knows he is going to have to leave soon, which is why he had spent most of today, before and after Blaine had come, working on the order for the Prince. If he continued to work like he did today, Kurt figured he should be able to finish the order sooner than expected.

The first thing Kurt noticed when he walked into his living room was that his father was once again passed out drunk. He didn’t know what was going on with his dad. He wasn’t always like this. Over the last year, Al’bert seemed to have spiraled out of control. He went from being a kind, loving father one day to a man that Kurt could barely tolerate being around the next. If this had happened after his mother Elizabet's death, Kurt might have understood it more but she had been gone for years.

At one point in Kurt’s life, he never would’ve doubted his father's love for him, but now, over the last year especially, things with Al’bert had changed. He was no longer the kind, caring father he once was. Now he just seemed cold and distant, like the light inside of him had been blown out. With all of the increased arguments Kurt has had with his father recently, he knew his time was running out and he would need to leave sooner than he had thought he would. Kurt would need to get several things in order so he would be ready when that time came. Now though, Kurt had another concern, Blaine. Yes, they had just met today, but after spending only three hours with him, Kurt knew that with Blaine was where he was meant to be. Kurt did not doubt that it was Blaine he had been waiting for his entire life. Blaine was like a missing part of his soul, a puzzle slipping into place. Kurt just hoped they would be afforded a little more time.

Kurt walked through the house, blowing out the candles his father had left burning while he slept. That had been one of the first things Al’bert had taught Kurt when he was little, never go to sleep with a candle left burning, that’s how most house fires started. Grabbing an apple in lieu of dinner, Kurt made his way to his bedroom. He had grabbed a snack earlier in the square, and that would hold him off till morning. Kurt quickly stripped off his outer clothes and slipped between the crisp sheets of his bed. Soon Kurt was asleep and was walking into Blaine’s waiting arms, right where he now knew, without a doubt, he was always meant to be.

When Kurt woke up, he was confused. Usually, when Blaine joined him, they spent their time talking and enjoying each other, but last night they hadn’t been alone. Last night they had been joined by a tall elderly gentleman dressed in long flowing robes, crafted out of what looked like the finest midnight blue velvet, the color of which was just a little darker color than the sparkling blue of his eyes. He had a regal-looking face with a long flowing white beard and mustache, and the kindest smile Kurt had ever seen. Kurt had felt instantly comfortable with this gentleman, feeling somehow like he knew him. The way he looked and his appearance hadn’t been what confused Kurt, it had been the last thing he had said before Kurt opened his eyes on a new day. The gentleman had smiled, looking at both of them with his eyes sparkling and simply said, “ ** _Ahh, it’s time again, my boys. Another promise kept_**.”

Unbeknownst to Kurt, at that same moment in time just across town, Blaine was waking up confused by the same dream, wondering what it meant for him and Kurt, and why that person had seemed to mean so very much to the both of them.

Kurt crawled out of bed, and dressed for his day, taking a deep breath before walking out of his bedroom door. The way his father acted now, Kurt never knew from one moment to the next what he would be facing when he next saw his father so he mentally prepared himself for every possible version of his father. When Kurt got to the kitchen, he saw his father smiling and breakfast on the table, enough for both of them.

“Morning son,” Al’bert said with a smile on his face.

Kurt looked at his father more confused than ever. “Morning, Otets.”

“So, when are you scheduled to have your order ready for the Prince?” his father asked, looking at Kurt the way he used to.

“I have a little over a week. I have most of the carving done, the longest part of it is going to be with the painting. I had most of the dolls I will need already carved for Mrs. Morozov's order. I’m thinking of using those to finish off the prince’s request and then remake her’s. She said she wasn’t in any kind of hurry to get them,” Kurt explained, ready once again for his father's explosion. He had always told Kurt not to borrow from Peter to pay Paul, and that was what he was doing. He was using the completed dolls he had made for Mrs. Morozov’s order to complete the one for the Prince. Even though Kurt knew she wouldn’t mind, Al’bert probably would.

“Smart move son, you don’t want to leave the Prince waiting,” Al’bert said with a smile on his face, standing up and patting Kurt on his shoulder. “It’s time for me to go, enjoy your day.”

Kurt watched his father walk out the door, wanting to say, ‘ _who are you and what have you done with my father_.’

Shaking his head, Kurt finished eating his breakfast and headed to his shop. He managed to get the other dolls needed for the order carved and had just started the painting when he heard the bell over his door ding. Turning around, Kurt could do nothing but smile as he watched Blaine walk in.

“Hey you,” Blaine said as he walked in the door, making sure no one was looking before placing a kiss on Kurt’s cheek.

“Hey yourself. I was beginning to wonder if you were going to come by today,” Kurt said, placing a quick kiss on Blaine’s cheek, wishing they could share a real kiss again, but knowing it wasn’t safe. There were too many people still walking around in the square.

“Sorry, I lost track of time while working with the Princess,” Blaine said with a sheepish smile. Where music was concerned, he got lost a lot. He loved having a reason to play.

“It’s ok. I kinda figured it was something like that,” Kurt said, laughing. He hadn’t known Blaine long, but one of the things he did know was that Blaine loved playing music and sharing his talent with other people.

“Can I ask you a question?” Blaine said, looking at anything but Kurt.

“I think you just did,” Kurt answered with a mischievous smile.

“That’s enough of that... _you_ ,” Blaine said, laughing, pointing at Kurt before turning serious. “Did you see what I did last night?” Blaine had known that Kurt joined him in his dreams. The day before they had even talked about some of the dreams they had shared, and the things they had done in them, but Blaine didn’t know if every dream he had Kurt had the same one.

“You mean the wizard looking man?” Kurt said, looking at Blaine now wondering if he had seen the same thing.

“ _Yes.._.” Blaine said, sighing. He was glad it wasn’t just him that had been confused as this dream had been different from all the other dreams they had shared. Blaine had known that man like he knew Kurt. The man saying, “ _Ahh, it’s time again, my boys. Another promise kept”_ had left Blaine feeling like they had done this before, lived through this before, but that just didn’t make sense.

“Yeah, it’s strange. I feel like seeing a wizard should have made me nervous or concerned, but I just felt at home. With him, I felt comfortable. Like somehow he was important to me, like he was somehow trying to point me in the way I was meant to go, where I should have always been,” Kurt said, looking at Blaine, feeling a little crazy saying that out loud.

“That’s how I felt, too. Like he was trying to tell me something important,” Blaine said, glad that Kurt had felt the same way. It somehow made this whole insane thing feel just a little less insane. Kurt had felt it too. “Oh, I told my mom about you, and she wants to meet you.”

“You told your mom about me…?” Kurt asked in shock. He hadn’t expected that since Kurt hadn’t said a word about Blaine to his dad, and had no intention of doing so.

“Yes, don’t worry though. I didn’t tell her about meeting you in my dreams,” Blaine said, placing a kiss on Kurt’s cheek again. “I told her that I had seen you at the ball, and then I saw you here.”

“But why would you tell her about me?” Kurt asked, still confused.

“Because she is important to me Kurt, and so are you. She already knew my feelings about, I guess you could say dating. Since before I turned seventeen, my father has been trying to convince me to find a nice girl to settle down with, or sign a commission and follow in his footsteps into military life. I knew in my heart, I would never be happy with either option. I knew that all I wanted to do was make music. Either play somehow professionally or become a teacher so I could share my love of music with others. I wanted to find someone like the man I was already in love with, in my dreams.” Blaine paused for a second to gather his thoughts and explain his relationship with his father.

“Understand, my father loves me, but he also wants what’s best for me. He feels me getting married or enlisting would be for the best. I didn’t know how to tell him I knew neither would ever make me happy, neither of those options was what was best for me. We had a small disagreement one day, and I had gone to play the piano. That is what I do when I get upset because it always helps to calm me. My mom came to me after he left, to let me know that my father only wanted what was best for me. I told her my truth, that I didn’t like girls. She just smiled and said I reminded her of her brother who was the same. She said she would understand, but that father never would,” Blaine said with sadness in his eyes.

“So, she was ok with everything?” Kurt asked, still in shock.

“Yes, she was. You just have to know my mama to understand. She is the most loving and kind person I have ever known. She loves me unconditionally and has always shown that. I have never once doubted my parent's love,” Blaine said with a soft smile, thinking about his mother.

“I lost my mom when I was young. I was only eight at the time. She was my best friend. We did everything together and I somehow know, if she had lived, she would have been the same as your mama. My father, on the other hand, is a completely different story. When I was young, my father showed me love, but as I grew older, he too started pushing me towards the military or getting married as your father has you. We have so many arguments about it. That is why I spend so much time here, going home only when I have to so that I can avoid him as much as possible. He has gone so far as giving me a deadline this time. If I opt not to get married or agree to a commission, he will do it for me. I have just over a month and a half before he follows through with his threats,” Kurt said, staring at the floor, not wanting Blaine to see the tears building in his eyes.

“Ahh, Kurt. What are you going to do, sweetheart?” Blaine asked, hating what Kurt was going through. Stepping forward to pull Kurt into his arms, no longer worried about someone walking in and catching them, knowing he needed to comfort his love.

“I don’t know yet honestly. I have been working on getting as many orders out as I could for a while that way, when I need to leave, I will have money to live on until I can figure something out,” Kurt said, taking a few steps away from Blaine.

“You won’t just leave me, will you Kurt? I just found you,” Blaine said, now concerned for a different reason. He had never taken into consideration that Kurt might leave, that Blaine might lose him. That thought terrified him.

“Oh, no, of course not Blaine. I would never do that. We’ll figure this whole thing out together, I promise,” Kurt said, running back over to Blaine and pulling him into his arms. At that moment, Kurt knew he had already fallen for Blaine. Yes, he had loved Blaine in his dreams, but the real Blaine, he knew he could spend the rest of his life loving.

Blaine reached his hands up so he could frame Kurt’s face, placing a soft, sweet kiss on his lips. He just couldn’t bring himself to care about the world outside of that door, he needed to hold Kurt again, kiss him, show him his love.

“Please don’t, Kurt. I am so very much in love with you. I know we have just met, but I feel like I have known you for hundreds of years. It’s like you are this missing piece of my soul that until the day we met, I didn’t even know I had lost. You complete me, Kurt. I need you in my life. I don’t know how we’ll do this, but somehow we must. I know for a fact that I cannot live my life without you. I wouldn’t even want to try,” Blaine whispered, feeling as tears rolled down his face, not even trying to hide them.

“I feel the same way, Blaine. You are a part of me. I love you so much. I don’t know how we will make this work, but somehow we must. I know I can’t live my life without you either,” Kurt said, looking at Blaine before reaching down, grabbing his hand and guiding him to the back room Kurt used for storage. Needing to have just a little more privacy, so that he could kiss Blaine the way he wanted to, _needed to_. They held each other sharing kisses and caresses until the church bell rang, letting them know it was already 6 pm.

“I’m so sorry, sweetheart. I need to go. My mom will start to worry. Would it be ok if I brought her to meet you in the morning before I go to the palace?” Blaine asked, leaning in to kiss Kurt one more time.

“Ok, if you are sure,” Kurt said nervously.

“I’m more than sure, sweetheart. I know she will love you as I do,” Blaine said before pulling Kurt into a hug one more time before turning around and walking out the door.


	6. Chapter 6

“I was beginning to think I was going to have to send out a search party for you, son. You know your dad will be here any minute. How would I explain this to him, you not being home?” Polina asked when Blaine walked into the kitchen.

“I’m so sorry, Mama. Kurt and I got started talking, and once again, I lost track of time,” Blaine said, hating that he had made her worry.

“I understand getting caught up Blaine, I do, but you need to pay more attention to the time. Pay attention to the watch we gave you if you don’t want your father to start suspecting things you don’t want him to know about,” she said turning her back on him.

At that moment, Blaine realized how nervous he had made his mother. She had been calling him moy mal’chik since he was born. For her to simply call him ‘Blaine’ now was very telling. “I’m so sorry, Mama. It won’t happen again.”

“Make sure it doesn’t, Blaine. Now go change your clothes before your father comes home,” Polina said, placing a soft kiss on Blaine’s cheek, letting him know all was forgiven.

With a smile, Blaine walked to his room and quickly changed his clothes. His father would have noticed right away if he hadn’t. Mikhail knew just how much Blaine detested the clothes he had to wear every day to court. He knew Blaine changed into his comfortable clothes the moment he got home. He would have known something was going on if he came home and Blaine hadn’t changed. Something Blaine had no intention of his father ever finding out about.

Blaine changed his clothes and then sat down at his piano to play his mom’s favorite song. Playing that song for her was another way for him to apologize to her as well as a way to let her know how much he loved her. He was halfway through the song when he heard his father come through the door. Blaine had cut it really close this time and would need to pay better attention to the time in the future. He had just wanted to spend as much time with Kurt as he could.

When he finished the song, Blaine stood up and made his way to the kitchen to help his mom carry dinner to the table. Remembering he hadn’t asked her yet about meeting Kurt tomorrow, Blaine walked up to her pulling her into a hug and whispered in her ear, “Hey, do you want to meet him in the morning?” He looked around to make sure his dad wasn’t anywhere close enough to hear what he asked.

“Oh, moy mal’chik I would love to,” she said with a proud smile on her face and a pat on his cheek.

“If you want, we can leave as soon as Father does in the morning, and then you can meet him. I can bring you back here before I have to go to the palace,” Blaine said with a proud smile, looking forward to introducing the people he loved most to each other.

“I look forward to it,” she said with a smile on her face following Blaine over to the table where dinner was waiting.

During dinner, Blaine talked to his parents about the songs he would be playing for the Princess’s luncheon, and how she had said she had expected him actually to sit down at the table with her and eat. He had been so shocked he had almost refused but didn’t want to say ‘no’ to Princess Daria again. Blaine could tell from his father’s face he didn’t like it, but this time didn’t say a word.

After dinner was eaten and Blaine helped his mother with cleaning up, he went back to his piano and played an hour for his parents. Entertaining them and practicing at the same time. After his last song was finished, he bade his parent’s good night and made his way to his room. Blaine quickly stripped off his outer clothes and crawled into bed, ready to be back with his Kurt, even if only in his dreams.

“ _Look how beautiful it is, Blaine,” Kurt said, walking into the room, and seeing the statue that Blaine had created for them._

_“Very beautiful,” Blaine said softly, never taking his eyes off of Kurt._

_“I’m talking about the statue silly. I love what you chose this time,” Kurt said before walking up to the statue, depressing the little black button on the back left-hand corner of the base. Kurt watched as the hidden door appeared. He carefully placed their book in the little drawer and then slid it back into place._

_“How could I not choose that, my sweet boy. I met you this time because of that crazy gondola driver. How could our statue be anything else?” Blaine said, watching as Kurt bent down to place their book in the secret hiding place all their statues had and sliding it back into place. Once the door was securely closed, Blaine walked up to Kurt and wrapped his arms around his waist, pulling him close. Even after 58 years together, Blaine still couldn’t get enough of his Kurt._

_Before walking up to their room and to their bed for the last time in ‘this’ lifetime, Blaine gently took Kurt’s hand and guided him over to the balcony where they had spent so much of their time together over the years. Looking around the place they had considered home for so long until Kurt's voice brought his attention back to him._

_“It is up to them now to come and find this place, to come and find themselves, to find us,” Kurt said, kissing Blaine on the cheek before they walked back inside, shutting the door securely and walking towards their room._

_“Yes, it is now in their hands. I love you, my sweet boy, now, then, and always,” Blaine said as they crawled into bed and he pulled his love close to him. Kissing Kurt’s sweet lips one more time before they closed their eyes and drifted off together._

Blaine was wide awake and not understanding why. All he knew was that he wanted to go back to that dream, feel that love again. Rolling over, Blaine lit the candle he kept beside his bed and grabbed the pocket watch his parents had given him on his seventeenth birthday. Judging by the darkness outside his partially covered window, it was still very early. Looking at his watch, he saw it was only 5 am. He blew out the candle, rolled over, and tried to go back to sleep. Blaine lay there for probably ten minutes before giving up on sleep and sitting up.

Leaning back against the headboard, Blaine tried to remember everything he had seen and heard in that dream. He remembers seeing a statue of a gondola. Blaine remembered the placement of the statue had been in the corner of what he assumed was a villa, judging by what he knew about architecture, which wasn’t much, and what he had seen in paintings that hung at the palace. He also remembered that the balcony they had stood on hung over a canal. Leading Blaine to believe it was somewhere in Venice. What Blaine had found odd was that even though the two men he had seen in his dream were elderly, he knew in his heart, that it had been Kurt and himself. He could feel how much that Blaine had loved his Kurt. Precisely the way he felt about his Kurt now. Shaking his head, he tried to figure out how any part of this could even be possible.

Sitting up, Blaine reached for his candle and re-lit it before standing up, walking over to his desk, and sitting down. Quickly grabbing a quill, ink, and paper, Blaine started writing down everything he could remember from the dream while his memory was still fresh. He wanted to go over everything with Kurt and see if he had seen the same thing Blaine had, or if Kurt had seen something different when he talked to him later today. Blaine wished he could see him now, but had no idea where Kurt even lived. He hated that he would now have to wait until after he left the palace for that talk. Blaine had wanted his mom to meet Kurt, but now, after that dream, he wished they hadn’t planned that for this morning. Shaking his head again, Blaine wondered once more how any part of this could be possible.

By the time Mikhail had left for the day, Blaine was practically pacing the room, bouncing on the balls of his feet ready to go. He turned around when he heard him mom start to laugh at him, “Oh, moy mal’chik, we will be with your Kurt shortly.”

Blaine could only smile at his mother’s words, she knew him so well. While he had been waiting on her, he had requested that their carriage be readied. Usually, when he was going to the palace, Blaine just rode Pavarotti, so he was able just to take off. Today, since his mom would be with him this morning, he would drive the carriage to Kurt’s and then bring her home and swap the carriage for Pavarotti before going to the palace to meet with the Princess.

Pulling up outside of Kurt’s shop, Blaine felt his heart speed up the way it always did when he knew they would see each other soon. Blaine walked around to his mother's side of the carriage and helped her down, placing her hand in the crook of his arm with a smile on his face and led her toward the shop.

Opening the door, Blaine heard the little tinkle of the bell that was above the door, and heard Kurt’s sweet voice from the back room, telling them he would be right with them.

“Blaine,” Kurt said when he walked out. Seeing him he felt himself turning red. No matter how many times Blaine came through that door, Kurt still couldn’t believe he was real. Taking his eyes off of Blaine finally, he let his eyes move to the woman beside him, a woman who could be none other than Blaine’s mother. Kurt walked forward, took her hand in his before bowing over and placing a kiss on her knuckles, “Madam.”

Blaine smiled watching his two favorite people interact with each other for the first time. “Kurt, I would love for you to meet my mother, Polina Andreyev. Mama, this is my Kurt, um, I mean Kurt Hamburg,” Blaine said with a big grin and a red face.

“Hello, his Kurt, it is nice to meet the man who has put such joy in my boy's life,” Polina said, loving the look on her Blaine’s face. She had never seen him so happy.

“It’s nice to meet you too, Mrs. Andreyev, and believe me, your boy puts joy in my life, too,” Kurt said shyly, looking at Blaine under his eyelashes. Polina could tell the boys wanted to greet each other, but wouldn’t with her standing there.

“I am going to go look at your beautiful work if that is ok,” she said, turning her back, giving them as much privacy as she could. She didn’t know which of the boys moved, but she heard the unmistakable sound of feet shuffling and what sounded like a sweet kiss. She was so happy for Blaine that he found someone he could love. She just wished he didn’t have to hide that love away, especially from his own father.

With a cough, she let them know she was going to turn around. When she looked back, she saw Blaine standing a little closer to Kurt than he had been before she walked away and noticed how red Kurt’s lips were. _Ahhh, Blaine, I am going to miss you_. She thought to herself because she knew at that moment, he would need to leave her soon. Polina didn’t know how she would survive it.

“You do such beautiful work, no wonder the Prince and Princess hired you,” she said, still looking at the doll he had sitting on the display case.

“Thank you, madam. I appreciate that. It is a labor of love,” Kurt said, smiling at her.

“I think we will go now and let you get back to your work. I’m glad I got to meet you. I wish things could be different for the both of you, but I am here should you need me,” Polina said, surprising both Kurt and Blaine when she pulled Kurt into a hug and then placed a kiss on his cheek.

“Thank you,” Kurt whispered. That had been the first time he had been hugged by someone other than Blaine since his mother died. He had forgotten just how nice it felt. “It was a pleasure meeting you as well. You have raised an amazing son, and for that, _I_ must thank you.”

Polina walked away again trying to give her son time for his goodbyes.

“I love you, Kurt. I know it is early in our relationship, but I mean it with every fiber of my being,” Blaine whispered softly. Keeping an eye on his mother's back, he pulled Kurt to him and shared one more kiss before stepping back. “I’ll come back on my way home. I have something I need to discuss with you.”

“I love you as well, Blaine, and I will be waiting for your return. I need to speak with you also,” Kurt said with a smile, rubbing Blaine’s cheek for a moment before stepping back, watching as Blaine and his mother exited the door.


	7. Chapter 7

“What do you think it meant?” Kurt asked Blaine the minute he walked back through his door that afternoon.

“So, you saw it as well?” Blaine asked as he pulled out the notes he had written that morning.

“Yes. It felt like we were somehow supposed to find that place, but I have no clue as to where to even begin. And why did those two men look so much like us, just older?” Kurt asked, looking at Blaine and hoping he might have the answers.

“I have no idea, but I can tell they loved each other deeply. Did you notice they also have our names? That’s what surprised me the most,” Blaine answered back.

“Yeah, that was weird, and their message was as cryptic as the wizards was. I wonder what they meant by ‘ _It is up to them now, to come and find this place, to come and find themselves, to find us.’_ Somehow it felt like they were talking directly to me, like they were telling me, us, to come and find them,” Kurt said, running his fingers through his hair.

“I felt the same. Here look at this,” Blaine said, passing Kurt his notes from this morning. “I wrote down everything I remembered as soon as I woke up. I didn’t want to take a chance of forgetting something. See if you saw something that I didn’t.”

“Hang on a minute. I wrote down what I saw as well,” Kurt said, walking away to the back room, coming back with a piece of paper with the neatest handwriting Blaine had ever seen.

“When we, or who I think was us,” Kurt said, looking at Blaine with a smile on his face. “When we were standing on the balcony, I noticed the lane in front of the villa had massive amounts of magnolia trees and they seemed so out of place. I think that might be why they stuck out to me. They felt out of place there,” Kurt said.

“I missed the trees, or just didn’t think about them. I guess I concentrated more on the statue. It was beautiful, and I think I was shocked someone had something like that in their parlor. I don’t know why, but it just felt important somehow, almost like that was the main thing I was supposed to see, _meant_ to see. For some reason, that statue meant something to me. I know that sounds crazy, but what part of this whole thing doesn’t? It’s crazy that somehow we dream the same dreams. It’s crazy that I knew you before meeting you the first time. And even though I don’t regret it at all, it's crazy that I loved you before I met you. It’s crazy that I feel like I have known you my whole life. And what is really crazy is that I feel such a connection with _that_ place, a draw in a way like somehow that is where I belong, _we_ belong. I felt like we were somehow supposed to find it. See, crazy,” Blaine said, looking at the paper, not wanting to look at Kurt, not wanting to see the look he knew was going to be there.

“You’re right, it _is_ all crazy, but I felt it too. I felt the need to be there, a need to find it, wherever it is. Where you said you had a connection with the statue, you said it felt like it was something important to you, I felt the same about what he put in the base of the statue. It was just a book, but I felt that the book would somehow answer all the questions I had. It just felt important as the statue. The villa itself somehow felt like home,” Kurt said as he looked at Blaine. At least if he was losing his mind then Blaine was as well.

“It did feel like home, but anywhere you are, to me, would feel like home,” Blaine whispered, reaching out to pull Kurt closer to him, needing to feel him close. “I love you so much,” Blaine whispered before leaning forward, allowing their lips to touch softly in a gentle caress, sweet and tender. Blaine felt he could never get enough of this. Their kiss deepened as Blaine ran his tongue across Kurt’s bottom lip, seeking permission to enter. When that beautiful mouth opened for him, Blaine slipped his tongue in and was in heaven. He had never tasted anything that compared to his Kurt. With his right hand cradling Kurt’s face, Blaine slowly ran his left hand down Kurt's side wrapping his arm around his waist, pulling him closer and feeling like he could never be close enough to him.

Blaine moaned when Kurt stepped away from him until he felt Kurt take his hand and start guiding him toward the back room. Once the door shut, Kurt was on him, kissing him passionately. Blaine shuddered against him, kissing back with just as much passion. They had kissed before, but nothing like this. This was a new experience and Blaine couldn’t get enough. Pushing Kurt back against the door, Blaine gently thrust his hips forward, connecting with Kurt’s body.

“Tell me you want this sweetheart,” Blaine groaned as he kissed across Kurt’s jaw, placing little kisses down his neck, and then back to his lips. Blaine needed him so bad he hurt. He felt Kurt and knew he was just as hard as he was, but Blaine needed to know Kurt was ready before he moved forward. This would be a first for both of them, and Blaine wanted it to be right.

“Yes, B. Please do something,” Kurt moaned out. He didn’t know what he wanted Blaine to do. He just knew that he needed Blaine to move, to do something.

Blaine shifted his hips, and his hard erection connected with Kurt’s. For a moment, he saw stars. Blaine had never felt anything like it before, never knew that he could. He had pleasured himself, but nothing he had ever felt before. Nothing had compared to what he was feeling right now being connected in this way to Kurt.

Reaching down, Blaine grabbed Kurt's ass and squeezed it, pulling him closer. Kurt separated his legs slightly, allowing them to connect even more. Blaine slowly started thrusting his hips forward, grinding against Kurt and placed kisses all over his face as he moved. When Kurt arched his back and thrust his hips forward, digging his nails into Blaine’s back, he knew gentle thrusts were no longer enough. Blaine grabbed Kurt’s ass harder, pulling him closer. He started moving faster, harder, rocking his hips and arching his back. Blaine started to feel the coil deep in his belly and the pull in his balls. He knew he was getting close, but he wanted to get Kurt there first. He wanted their first time to be perfect.

Not long after, Blaine heard Kurt start to chant ‘ _please_ _don’t stop, please don’t stop’_ with every thrust of Blaine’s hips. Blaine moved even faster, wanting to help Kurt get to completion. When he felt Kurt shudder, wrap his arms around his neck and kiss him, Blaine knew he had finally gotten his release. A few more thrusts and Blaine followed him, moaning Kurt’s name, placing sloppy kisses on his mouth, breathing heavy. Blaine couldn’t stop looking at Kurt. He looked more beautiful than Blaine had ever seen him, with flushed cheeks and swollen red lips. Pressing their foreheads together, Blaine gently kissed Kurt's sweet lips, his whole body tingling from what they had just shared.

"I love you. I love you. I love you,” Blaine whispered, placing kisses all over Kurt's face.

"I love you, too, so so much," Kurt whispers with a satisfied smile on his face. "That was amazing."

" _You_ are amazing," Blaine said, pulling Kurt into his arms and holding him tight.

“I had no idea it could be like that,” Kurt whispered, raising his hand to rub Blaine’s cheek before slowly leaning forward to kiss him.

“Me either,” Blaine said with a soft smile.

They slowly slid to the floor and held each other, cuddling, whispering, talking, connecting. When Blaine heard the church bell ring signaling it was 6 pm he groaned. He didn’t want to leave Kurt, especially now, not after what they had shared, but he knew he needed to.

“I’m sorry, sweetheart. I need to go. Can I come and see you tomorrow,” Blaine asked, leaning in to kiss Kurt one more time.

“If not, I will have to come and find you. After all, I do know where you hang out,” Kurt said with a satisfied smile on his face.

“That you do, sweetheart, but believe me, you will never have to come and find me again,” Blaine said with a sweet smile, leaning in kissing Kurt one more time before standing up and adjusting his now sticky pants, grinning as he did so. “See you tomorrow.”

~*~

Kurt watched as Blaine walked out the door, smiling before heading to the back room, to change his pants, thankful that he always kept an extra pair in the shop. Once he was changed, Kurt walked over to his table he used when he was painting and went back to work on the dolls for the Prince. After waking up from the dream this morning at five, Kurt hadn’t been able to sleep. He decided to come here and knock most of the Prince's order out. Kurt now just had the final painting to do with the main doll, and then it would be complete.

Kurt worked until 8 pm when he was finally satisfied with the way the last doll turned out. Standing up, Kurt gingerly picked it up and carried it over to the shelf where he had the other six that went with the set, setting it beside them to dry. Kurt decided there was nothing else he needed to do tonight. He would just head home and start in the morning on Mrs. Morozov's dolls after stopping by the palace to deliver the Prince’s order. Kurt stretched and couldn’t keep the smile off of his face, remembering what he and Blaine had done. Today was a good day…

Kurt’s day turned to hell the minute he walked in his front door. As usual, the parlor was lit with every candle they owned, but this time his father was very much awake, from the look of him very much sober and was definitely not alone. Al’bert was sitting on the couch with a lady of questionable morals judging by the clothes she was wearing. Kurt took one look at her and didn’t like her at all. Apparently, the feeling was mutual judging by the sneer on her face, and the way she looked at him like he wasn’t worth her time. This, coming from a woman who looked like she worked in a back alleyway.

“Who is this, Otets?” Kurt asked, trying not to look at the woman sitting beside his father.

“Sit down, Kurt. We need to talk,” Al’bert said, motioning to the chair in front of him.

“What’s going on?” Kurt asks as he sits down, feeling very uncomfortable and nervous all of a sudden.

“This is Yelena. We have been seeing each other for a few months. Last week I asked her to marry me and she said yes,” Al’bert said, smiling at Yelena.

“You’re getting married?” Kurt asked, shocked. He hadn’t even known his dad was seeing someone, much less ready to marry again.

“Got married you little prick. We got married,” Yelena said, looking at Kurt like he was dirt on her shoe.

“That’s right, my pet,” Al’bert said, looking at her with a smile, patting her hand. “We got married this afternoon.”

“Why are you just now telling me about her?” Kurt whispered. This was worse than he thought.

“Up until now, it was none of your concern, now it is,” Al’bert said to his son. “As I said, we got married, and Yelena doesn’t want us to start our married life with other people in our home, and I have to agree with her. I know I told you that I would give you two months to make your decision, but to be honest, I am tired of waiting. I have been more than patient with you. I need you to pack your things and be out of this house by morning.” Al’bert took a moment to look at his new wife. She made him feel things that he wasn’t sure he’d ever feel again. And if getting rid of his son made her happy, then he’d do it as long as she kept him happy.

“Since you were late getting home, I can assume you were working on that stupid order for the Prince that you seem so proud of. Hopefully, you have finished it and can deliver it to get some money. You also have two days to make your decision, you either marry Svetlana Kuznetsov, or if you refuse her, I will be signing a commission for you. It is your choice to make,” Al’bert said, standing up, reaching for Yelena's hand, jerking her up and then marching them upstairs.

Kurt sat where he was for a few minutes completely lost. That had come out of nowhere. He knew his father had been acting odd, but Kurt would never have thought what just happened would happen, not in a million years. He was now out of time and needed to leave. If he knew his father, even though he had said Kurt had two days, he knew today would be included in that time frame even though it was already 8:30 at night. His very next thought was of Blaine. What was he going to do? Kurt didn’t even know where Blaine lived, so he couldn’t go to him, not that he would have been able to anyway.

Kurt slowly makes his way upstairs and into his room to pack as much of his belongings as he could, knowing that this would be his only chance. The first thing Kurt pulled out was his money sack. He had always kept it hidden. Kurt didn’t know if his father would take it from him, but he had always felt more comfortable hiding it away. Now more than ever, Kurt was glad he had. What he had along with what the Prince would pay him tomorrow should hold him over till he could get himself situated somewhere.

The sound coming from his father's room almost made Kurt gag. The grunts from his father, the fake moans from HER, and the headboard hitting the wall, had Kurt moving faster to gather his things. He grabbed what he couldn’t live without including his very first nesting doll, the one he had made for his Mama. Looking around, making sure he had everything he would need, Kurt grabbed his bags and left this home for the last time. He knew that there was no place left for him in it.

Kurt went to his shop and waited for the morning to come, not even trying to sleep. He knew he needed to be ready to go. Looking around his shop, he wondered what to do with everything. His tools, of course, would be going with him, but he wondered about all the dolls he had already crafted. Making a decision, Kurt walked up to the one that Blaine’s mom had liked. He pulled it apart and then slipped a note wrapped around the smallest doll, then put them all back together. He placed it in a box and then checked the Prince’s set of dolls, figuring they would need a few more hours to dry.

Kurt then went to his second favorite set of dolls and boxed them up. Those he would send to Mrs. Morozov. No, they weren’t what she had ordered, but they would be similar, and since Kurt would be giving them to her for free, he hoped she wouldn’t be too disappointed. He wrote a quick note and then placed it in the box with the dolls.

Looking around, Kurt decided he would take the smaller dolls with him as samples and the rest he would leave behind. He didn’t have enough room in his bags to take them, and he couldn’t wait around long enough to sell them. He knew his father meant what he said, that he would sign a commission for Kurt. If he was gone before then, no charges could be leveled against him.

Kurt left for the palace, hoping to get in and out before Blaine got there, he couldn’t face him right now. He would let the letter he had written inside the doll do that for him. Kurt didn’t want Blaine to feel obligated to leave with him, so Kurt wrote in the note where he would be going, explaining everything the best he could.

As Kurt walked into the palace, the first person he was shown to was Princess Daria, “Your Highness,” Kurt said, bowing over her hand, placing a soft kiss on her knuckles.

“Mr. Hamburg, what may I help you with today?” the Princess asked smiling.

“I am here to deliver your husband's order, but I was also hoping I might speak to you as well. I know my friend, Blaine, has been working with you lately. I was hoping that tomorrow sometime, that you could give him this for me since I will no longer be around to do so myself, ” Kurt said, holding the package out to her with shaking hands. Kurt kept his eyes downcast, trying not to let the tears he had been holding back all morning fall. The thought of never seeing Blaine again was tearing Kurt apart.

“You are traveling away, Mr. Hamburg?” Daria said, confused. She and Blaine had had long conversations. Daria knew how Blaine felt about Kurt. He had let it slip one day, and she had promised to keep his secret. He had become a dear friend to her, and she hated the thought that Kurt would be leaving because she knew what that would do to Blaine and how hurt her friend would be.

“Yes, Princess. Things have gone wrong with my father and it would be best if I left,” Kurt said with a sad smile.

“Well, I hope you find what you are looking for Mr. Hamburg. I will do as you ask. Go with God,” she said, surprising Kurt by pulling him into a hug. “Now, if you will follow me, I will take you to my husband's office.”

While Kurt had been waiting this morning for a decent time to go to the palace, he started thinking about his quickest escape route and came up with the only plan he could think of in such short notice. Kurt offered to deliver the dolls himself. The Prince, of course, allowed it, but only if Kurt would accept transport in one of the crown’s conveyances to Novosibirsk. Kurt accepted the offer and would be leaving in under an hour. Since it was a long trip, nothing would be thought of Kurt taking several bags.

Still hoping to make it out of the palace before Blaine appeared, he quickly made his way out of the Prince’s office, passing through the music room, the only way out. The first thing Kurt saw was Blaine, sitting at the piano, already playing for the Princess. Kurt’s heart stopped. He stood there looking at Blaine drinking in his fill, so afraid this would be the last time he would ever see the person he loved. When Kurt noticed the Princess looking at him, watching Blaine, the smile she had on her face disappeared, and a sad look took its place. She raised her hand, she was going to let Blaine know he was there, but Kurt shook his head, looking at her almost pleadingly. She nodded her head, and Kurt quickly walked past, keeping his head bowed, ignoring Blaine when he called his name.


	8. Chapter 8

Blaine woke up from a fitful night of sleep for the second night in a row. Kurt hadn’t joined him in his dreams and he couldn’t figure out why. After what happened yesterday at the palace, Blaine was extremely concerned. He had been working with the Princess to get ready for the luncheon she had scheduled for the next afternoon when he saw Kurt walk through the room. He’d known that Blaine was there, Kurt even passed through the room that Blaine was playing in, but had never once looked his way or acknowledged his presence in any way. Blaine had gone so far as to call Kurt’s name, but he had just kept walking.

After Blaine had finished with the Princess he went by Kurt’s shop, hoping they could work out whatever was wrong. Blane was afraid he had pushed Kurt too far the night before. He had only planned on talking to Kurt about his dream, but one thing led to another and... Blaine now wonders if Kurt didn’t like it? Had he been disappointed? That thought broke his heart since it had been the best experience of Blaine’s life.

On his way to the palace, Blaine rode by Kurt’s shop one more time, hoping that Kurt would be there this time, that he didn’t lose the love of his life after only being together two weeks. The shop once again is dark with no sign of Kurt to be seen. Brokenhearted, Blaine made his way to the palace. He wanted to get done today so he could just go back home, crawl into his bed, and cry. When Blaine got to the palace he tried to act like his same upbeat self but failed miserably. He could see the way the Princess looked at him.

“I’m sorry, Blaine. I can only imagine how hurt you must be feeling. When Mr. Hamburg told me he was leaving, I knew you would be so hurt,” Daria said to her friend.

“Wait, he told you he was leaving!” Blaine said in disbelief, wondering why Kurt would tell the Princess something he hadn’t even told him.

“Yes. He said things had gone bad with his father and he then asked me to give you this,” She said, passing the box that had been on the piano since yesterday morning to Blaine.

“May I be so bold as to ask why I am just getting this now?” Blaine asked, hurt that she had kept something like that from him.

“He asked me to wait for a couple of days before I gave it to you. If it makes you feel better, this wasn’t an easy decision for him to make. I could tell how much he was hurting. Open his gift and see what he has left you,” Daria said with a sad smile.

Blaine stood up and pulled the box toward him, slowly opening it and pulling out the doll inside. Blaine instantly knew which one it was. It had been the one in the corner of Kurt’s shop, the one his mother had fallen in love with when she came to meet him.

One by one, Blaine unstacked the dolls, once again marveling at the craftsmanship Kurt had put into each individual piece. They were all the same, yet different at the same time. By the time he got to the last doll, he felt tears running down his face until he saw the note wrapped around the smallest doll tucked away inside. Blaine slowly unwrapped the note to read it, breaking down as he did.

_Blaine,_

_I know I said I would never leave you, and that had been my intention. Things completely out of my control have changed that. I am sorry for the way I am telling you this, for not coming to you and talking, but there isn’t time. My father has kicked me out and has said that he will be signing a commission for me by tomorrow. I must leave, I have to get away from here. I am taking the dolls I crafted for the Prince’s brother by the crown’s conveyances to Novosibirsk. I guess the Prince thought I was trying to be helpful. Unfortunately, it was just my only way of escaping._

_I will wait for you in Novosibirsk for two weeks but I’ll understand if you don’t want to follow me. I won’t blame you for not wanting to leave your family, from what I have seen they are worth staying for. Know, though, that I will love you always. After the two weeks have passed, if you have opted not to come to me, I will go on to the place we dreamed of, and there I will stay. If you ever change your mind, you can always find me there._

_These dolls are for your mother. I saw how much she liked them when she was in my shop and she showed me so much kindness that day that I wanted her to have them. Please forgive me Blaine, and know I had no choice._

_I have told my father that delivering the dolls to his brother was the Prince’s request, hoping he would put off signing the commission for me until I return, which of course I never will. Whether he signs it or not, I won't be back, not for a long time anyway. As I said, I will wait for you for two weeks to give you time to make up your mind and get your things together in case you want to join me. If you opt not to, I honestly will understand. I will go on to Italy by myself and this will be our goodbye. I hope to see you again, Blaine. I have fallen so very much in love with you, but I will understand if this isn’t what you want and I will not blame you or harbor any ill will toward you._

_With all my love,_

_Kurt_

“So, what are your plans?” the Princess asked quietly. Blaine hadn’t realized she had been reading over his shoulder.

“I’m going to go, of course,” Blaine said with a blinding smile. “I will perform at your luncheon tomorrow, and then I’ll leave right after.”

“I can’t blame you, Blaine. You can’t let that kind of love slip away. I want you to know, though, that if things don’t work out you can always come back, you will always have a friend here,” Daria said as tears slipped down her cheeks. She was going to miss him terribly.

“Thank you, Princess, for your kindness and your friendship. They truly have meant so much to me. You will be missed,” Blaine said.

“Wait just a moment before you go,” the Princess said before walking across the room and sitting down at the little secretary that had been placed there for her use. Blaine watched as she wrote something and then walked back over to him, handing him a piece of paper.

“What is this?” Blaine asks, looking at the letter with the Princess’s official seal on it.

“This is a letter of recommendation. My cousin, Princess Annunziata Isabella of Savoy, is planning her wedding in several month's time. She has had a difficult time finding someone adequately qualified to play the piano for such a grand occasion. I feel you will be perfect for her. I will be attending the wedding so I will be able to see you there. Since my husband will not allow me to travel on my own he will be going with me, and therefore so will your father. I will make it a decree that your mother be included in the planning as well,” Daria said, looking at Blaine with a smile.

“You are going to bring my mom to Venice for me? Why would you do that?” Blaine asked, unable to believe she would do something like that for him.

“Blaine, you are the first person since I got to Saint Petersburg, who has treated me like something other than someone they had to bow and scrape too. You treated me like you would a friend. You have been a friend, and therefore I want to be a friend and do this for you,” Daria said smiling.

“I don’t know how to thank you, Princess,” Blaine said, staring at her in shock.

“You can go, find your Kurt and live a long and happy life together. I will be here if you ever need anything,” Daria said, hugging him one more time. “Now go. You have much to do before tomorrow. I will see you then.”

When Blaine walked into his house, the first thing his mother noticed was that his beautiful smile was back on his face. “Did you find him, moy mal’chik? Did you find your Kurt?”

“He has left,” Blaine said, placing the box Kurt had left for him, minus the letter, on the table.

“I don’t understand. Why would he leave, and why do you seem happy about it?” Polina asked her son.

“He had to leave. He had to get away from his father. I don’t know what exactly happened, but he had to leave. I’m happy, because Mama, he didn’t leave _me_. I am going to join him,” Blaine said happily until he saw the look on his mama’s face.

“So, you will be leaving me then?” Polina asked, her eyes so sad now.

“I’m sorry, Mama. I have to. I have to be with him. I love him more than I ever thought possible. I would be lost without him,” Blaine answered, hoping she will understand.

“Where will you go?” Polina softly asked, not ready to let her boy go yet, but understanding now she would have to. She had known this day would come though she had hoped it wouldn’t be so soon.

“I’m going to meet him in Novosibirsk. He is delivering something for the Prince, and then we will be going to Venice from there. This isn’t goodbye forever, Mama. I will write to you as often as I can, and if possible I will come and visit, or you could always come and visit me,” Blaine answered before hugging her.

“So, when will you leave?” Polina asked, hoping it would be in a month or two.

“Tomorrow, Mama. I will leave right after the Princess’s luncheon,” Blaine answered, watching as his mama’s face dropped again.

“So soon. What will we tell your father?” she asked as tears slipped down her face.

“Princess Daria wrote me an introductory letter to Princess Annunziata Isabella of Savoy. She is Princess Daria’s cousin and is looking for someone to play for her wedding in four months in their summer palace in Venice. She believes I will be perfect. If father has questions, I can simply show him the letter and say that it was a request from the Princess, which will be true.

“So, it has all been worked out then,” she said. Polina was extremely proud of her son, of his accomplishments, but also sad because she knew he would soon be leaving her.

“Yes, but Mama, she said she would be going to the wedding, along with the Prince and father. She is going to arrange for you to be there, as her companion, so I will get to see you again in four months,” Blaine said with a smile, noticing as her face lit up again.

“So, I will be able to see you and Venice at the same time?” she asked, her smile getting bigger.

“Yes, Mama. I will be like a local by then and I can give you a tour of the city,” Blaine said, laughing by this point.

“That might not be too bad. You must promise me you will write every week. I know how long it will take to get the mail, but you must still promise,” Polina said, taking Blaine's face in her hands.

“I promise, Mama, every week. But I will also request letters in return,” Blaine said, smiling.

“Done,” she said, kissing Blaine on his cheek. “Now go pack. You don’t want to be rushing around in the morning and waiting until the last minute.”

Blaine leaned over and placed a kiss on her cheek, then walked to his room. For once, Blaine was glad his father had forced him to buy new clothes when he started working with Princess Daria. Now Blaine had a decent wardrobe he could wear if he got to work with Princess Annunziata. Blaine packed his money sack, glad he had saved every ruble the Princess had paid him. With what he would get tomorrow, he knew he would be able to support himself and Kurt until they could get settled. He didn’t know what kind of coin Kurt might have with him since he had had to leave so quickly. Blaine wanted to make sure that Kurt had no worries. He knows Kurt can take care of himself, but he looked forward to helping.

The thought of being back with Kurt had him packing even faster. He wasn’t sure why, though, because he still will not be able to leave until afternoon tomorrow sometime, but he still felt a need to rush, stopping only when his mom called to let him know it was time for dinner.

Telling his father was easier than Blaine had expected. It would seem that the Princess talked to her husband about her plans while she was in the Prince’s office while Mikhail was standing behind him. When the Prince had asked what he thought, Mikhail had said it was an excellent idea. What else could his father have said? Blaine couldn’t believe how easily the Princess had put everything in motion for him.

“Oh, Polina, I meant to tell you. Princess Daria has requested that you be at her luncheon tomorrow. I, of course, will be there as well,” Mikhail said, and Blaine could see how uncomfortable the idea was to him.

When Blaine left for the palace the next day, he put his bags in his parents' carriage, expecting to get a public conveyance from the palace on to Novosibirsk. That is when a sobering realization hit him, Pavarotti. He will be leaving his horse, his faithful companion. It hit him hard. Pavarotti had been part of Blaine’s life since he was fourteen years old. He had spent hours riding on Pavarotti’s back, flying, feeling the wind through his hair. He will be missed almost as much as Blaine’s parents.

“Pavarotti,” Blaine whispers looking at his parents

“He will still be here when you come home,” Mikhail said, not realizing Blaine wouldn’t be coming home again.

“Pavarotti will be taken care of just like you have always done,” Polina said to her son. She knew this was the last time Blaine would see him.

Blaine slowly walked to the stables where their horses were kept and went straight to Pavarotti’s pen. “Thank you, my friend. Thank you for tirelessly going for me, anytime day or night. You were my friend when I had no other. I will miss you. I love you, my friend,” Blaine whispered, rubbing Pavarotti’s face and mane. Before walking away and rejoining his parents, Blaine took a steadying breath, wiped the tears off of his face, and then headed out to face the rest of his life.

The luncheon was wonderful. The Princess introduced Blaine to everyone as her friend, shocking Mikhail, but not Polina. Polina knew that Blaine and the Princess had gotten close over the short amount of time he had been working with her at the palace. Blaine played every song the Princess had asked him to, and then played the song he knew was his Mama’s favorite, knowing this would be the last time he played for her for a while, if ever again.

Before Blaine knew it, it was time for him to leave. The first person he went to was Polina, “I love you, Mama. Thank you for understanding and loving me. I will never forget everything you have done for me. I am a better man because of you,” Blaine whispered, pulling his mother into his arms, holding her as she broke down. Blaine made sure to keep her turned so that no one could see her cry. He knew she wouldn’t want that.

“I love you, moy mal’chik, more than you will ever know. I am so proud to be able to call you my son. I am proud of the man you have become, and no matter what it means for me, I just want you happy, and I think Kurt makes you that. Listen, when Uil’yam moved away, he went to Florence. We have managed to keep in contact through letters, but it has never been the same as having my big brother at home with me. I know they are close together, but go by and see him before heading to Venice. Here’s his address. Tell him his baby sister still misses him, and that it’s safe to come home anytime.”

Polina moved her hand so that she was holding Blaine’s slipping him a coin purse. “Here is the money I have saved for you. It’s not a lot because I didn’t have much time. It should be enough to get you where you need to go. This along with what the princess has given you should be enough to last you until you can find your feet. Good luck, my son. I love you. Stay safe, and I hope you and your Kurt can find what you are looking for. Who knows, maybe one day I will join you. Please send me letters so I know that you’re safe,” Polina said, holding Blaine just a few minutes more. Already missing him beyond belief.

Blaine next walked up to his father, giving him a slight bow. “Thank you for everything you have done for me, Otets, for everything you taught me, for helping me be the man I am.”

Mikhail looked at Blaine for a long moment before pulling him into a hug. “I know I don’t really say it often, but I love you, my boy. Stay safe. I don’t know why, but I have a feeling you are never coming back.”

Blaine couldn’t answer him. He barely kept it together while hugging his father. “I love you too, Otets. Thank you again.” Blaine stepped back, looking at his parents before walking over to the Princess.

“Your Highness, it is time for me to go. Thank you so much for everything you have done for me, for understanding me and not thinking me weird. Thank you for allowing me to call you friend,” Blaine said before bowing down over her hand and placing a kiss on her knuckles.

“You will be missed more than you will ever know, my friend,” Daria said before looking at her husband and getting a nod that only she saw. “Follow me please,” she said before turning around and walking out the door.

Not understanding, Blaine followed her. “I have yet to pay you for your time. Here is your coin. Also, if you step outside, you will find a royal conveyance waiting for you. You will not say a word. You will politely step inside and leave. Don’t make me call my husband,” Princess Daria said, slipping Blaine a much bigger money bag than he expected. “As I said, don’t say a word, my friend, you deserve it. Be safe, be happy, and much love to you and your Kurt.”

Blaine barely held it together as he made his way first to his parent’s carriage to get his baggage, and then over to the carriage that would be taking him to Novosibirsk. To his Kurt.


	9. Chapter 9

Blaine felt like the journey to the home of Antoin Menshikov, to his Kurt, took years instead of days. His heart skipped a beat when he pulled up to the house and saw Kurt outside sitting under a tree. There had been no way of notifying Kurt that he was on his way. Blaine hated how long Kurt had to wait, uncertain if Blaine would show.

“You know, my sweet boy, when you said I could always come and find you this time, I didn’t know that meant I would have to  _ keep _ coming to find you. Will you continuously leave me?” Blaine asks as he walked quietly up to Kurt, a soft smile on his face. Until seeing him again, Blaine hadn’t realized just how much he had missed Kurt.

“ _ Blaine _ ? You came,” Kurt whispered as he stood up. Kurt ran straight into Blaine’s arms, not caring who might be watching and broke down.

Blaine pulled him just a little closer, placing a kiss on top of Kurt’s head. “Where else would I be, sweetheart? I am nothing without you. Is there anywhere we can go private? I really need to kiss you right now.”

Kurt nodded his head and led Blaine a little bit into the grove of trees that would offer them a bit of privacy. That was all Blaine needed. He pulled Kurt back into his arms and placed a kiss on his lips, sliding his tongue into Kurt’s open, inviting mouth. Blaine was desperate to taste Kurt again and chased his tongue around. He ran his hands down Kurt’s back before landing on his ass, squeezing it and pulling Kurt closer. Before Blaine realized what he was doing, he had Kurt pushed back against a tree, thrusting against him.

“Ugg, we gotta stop,” Blaine said, stepping back slightly with a sheepish grin. “See what you do to me, my love. I lose all sense of propriety. And you were worried I wouldn’t come for you? I have spent my lifetime looking for you and will spend the rest of it, if need be, doing it again and again. You’re not getting rid of me that easily, my sweet boy.”

Blaine placed another kiss on Kurt’s lips before stepping back to look at Kurt. “Would you like to tell me now what happened? What made you feel you needed to leave me without a word? You were just gone Kurt. I saw you at the palace, and you wouldn’t even look at me, you wouldn’t stop when I called you. Then on top of that, you just disappeared. You didn’t even join me in my dreams. Do you know what I thought, Kurt? I thought I pushed you away with our intimacies, that we went too far, too fast. I thought you wanted it too. I even asked you,” Blaine said, starting to pace.

“I did want it, Blaine. I want  _ you _ . When I got home that night, my father told me he had gotten married earlier that day. Blaine, I swear she looked like a lady of ill repute. You wouldn’t believe the clothes she was wearing, and she had the nerve to look at me like I was somehow below her. She even called me a little prick. My wonderful father sat me down and explained how he knew he had given me two weeks to make a decision about my future, but Yelena felt that since they were a newly married couple, it would be best if I left the next morning. He then told me I either marry Svetlana Kuznetsov or he would be signing a commission in my name. I had two days, and knowing my father, he would have included that day in the count, even though it was already nighttime.” Kurt took a breath, disgusted with his father even more as he retold the tale of how he ended up leaving so quickly.

“I didn’t sleep that night, I spent it packing and then going to my shop to finish off the order for the Prince. I needed to have it ready to give to him, so I could collect my payment and volunteer to bring it here. That was my way of escaping. The Prince also knew that I was leaving, so I could not be held at fault if the commission was signed and I didn’t show up. Since I didn’t sleep that night or the next because of nerves, that is probably why I didn’t join you,” Kurt explained.

“Ok, but what about you walking past me like you didn’t know me, or not stopping when I know you heard me call for you?” Blaine asked. He was trying not to let Kurt know how much that act had hurt him.

“I couldn’t, Blaine. If I had stopped, you would have tried to stop me, and I knew what I needed to do. I am so sorry, Blaine. I never meant to hurt or worry you. I didn’t mean to make you feel like I didn’t want you,” Kurt said, walking up to Blaine placing his hand on Blaine’s cheek.

“Please don’t ever do it again, Kurt,” Blaine said.

“Never,” Kurt whispered as he pulled Blaine to him, placing a kiss on his lips. He had so missed the feeling of Blaine’s lips on his.

“Ok,” Blaine sighed out, releasing a breath he didn’t even know he had been holding.

“Do you want to come and meet Antoin? He’s really nice. I found out why he is here, so far away from his family,” Kurt said, grabbing Blaine’s hand and walking him back to the house, not releasing Blaine’s hand when they got right to the house, even when Blaine tried to pull his hand away. “It’s ok, Blaine. We won’t be judged here, Antoin is like us.”

“What do you mean by we won't be judged? Antoin is like us? Blaine asked, not understanding.

Kurt brought their joined hands up so that Blaine was looking at them and then pointed from himself to Blaine and back. “Like us,” Kurt said with a smile.

“You mean he’s…?” Blaine asked to make sure he understood what Kurt was talking about.

“Yes,” Kurt said with a grin, swinging their joined hands as they walked towards the front door of the house.

Blaine stopped when he realized something. “Wait a minute, you mean to tell me that you have been here… alone… in this house with him, without me being here?” Blaine asked. He had never been jealous before, but now he understood the concept. Kurt was his, his boyfriend. Well, shit, no he wasn’t, not in any official sense at least.

“Blaine, don’t tell me you are jealous. Antoin is a sweet man, but no one can compare to you. In case you didn’t know it, I am crazy about you,” Kurt said, smiling, realizing someone was jealous of him and another man. That had never happened before, and Kurt had to admit he liked it a little.

“Yeah, but…” Blaine started, only to be interrupted by Kurt.

“But nothing, Blaine. I am yours, and you are mine. That’s just how it is,” Kurt said, leaning in to kiss Blaine. Trying to remove the look of worry on his face.

“Kurt, before we go inside, can I ask you a question? And don’t be a smart-ass and say I just did,” Blaine said with a grin not waiting for Kurt to respond. “Kurt Hamburg, will you be my boyfriend?”

“Blaine Andreyev, I would be proud to be,” Kurt tried to say, before his words were cut off by Blaine’s lips slamming into him and kissing him passionately, pulling back only when they heard someone on the porch clearing his throat. Blaine quickly pulled away from Kurt and looked around as he pushed Kurt behind his back.

“Kurt, I can only assume this is your Blaine. And damn boy, you weren’t lying. He  _ is _ yummy,” Antoin said, his eyes moving from the top of Blaine’s head slowly down his body, stopping just below Blaine’s waistband, and then moving back up. The hard-on Blaine had been sporting just a moment before now completely gone. This time it was Kurt’s time to be jealous as he watched another man's eyes move up and down his boyfriend’s body.

“Yes, this is Blaine,  _ my _ boyfriend,” Kurt said, glaring at Antoin. He had liked him up to now, but not so much anymore.

“Kurt, I was just joking with you. If you could’ve seen your face,” Antoin said, turning around and leading them into the house. “I was coming to tell you dinner is ready. It’s nice to meet you, Blaine. I have heard some nice things about you.”

“Nice to meet you, too,” Blaine said, wrapping his arm around Kurt’s waist as they followed Antoin to the dining room. He needed to hold Kurt again after the worry he had gone through since Kurt left.

They ate dinner, and then Antoin showed them to the room they would share. Blaine felt like he was able to sleep for the first time in weeks. He liked sleeping with Kurt in his arms all night and waking up beside him in the morning. That was something he could get used to and planned on doing so.

“So, what is the best way to get to Italy from here?” Blaine asked over breakfast the next morning.

“To be honest, the quickest way would riding a horse to Moscow and then getting passage on a train from there, but that would be an arduous route. I know it will add a few days to your travel time, but a carriage would be the most comfortable means, especially since you have baggage you will be taking with you,” Antoin said after swallowing a bite of his food.

“When do you think we should leave?” Kurt asked Blaine, now ready to start their journey together.

“Probably as soon as we can get everything arranged,” Blaine answered, reaching over to take Kurt’s hand in his, knowing that he will not always be able to in the future.

“I can arrange for a carriage to take you tomorrow, but have you decided yet how you will travel?” Antoin asked.

“I guess like you said, make our way to Moscow and then take a train from there,” Blaine said, looking at Antoin with a confused look.

“No, sorry, I meant how do the two of you plan on traveling together? Will you be associates, friends, family? Will you book in two sleeper cars as friends or associates, or one car as a family is what I meant?” Antoin asked, looking between them.

“I don’t want to be in a separate car from you, Blaine,” Kurt said.

“Well, then I would suggest that you are brothers. No one will look at two brothers sharing a car as wrong. It is done all the time. Eyes might be turned if friends of the same gender shared one,” Antoin said.

“It’s nice to meet you, my brother, I have always wanted one of those,” Blaine said with a grin.

“Darn, this is going to be a long trip without kisses,” Kurt said with an exaggerated sigh, slumping back in his chair.

“Wait, what to do you mean by no kisses?” Blaine asked, not liking the sound of that at all.

“Well, I can’t very well kiss my brother now, can I?” Kurt said with a grin, ducking as Blaine reached to grab him and laughing as Blaine growled.

“That wasn’t nice, Kurt. Not nice at all,” Blaine said with a pout on his face that Kurt found adorable.

Antoin laughing brought them both back to the conversation, “Ok, so brothers it is. Just remember to keep the kisses for when you are in your stateroom.”

After breakfast, Antoin arranged for a carriage to take them to Moscow the next morning. They opted for Kurt to use the last name Andreyev. He felt, after the way his father acted, he was ready to drop the Hamburg name both publicly and in private. Kurt would never use that name again. The next morning, as promised, the carriage was waiting for Blaine and Kurt, ready to take them on the first leg of their trip.

“Antoin, I want to thank you for everything you have done. Not only for allowing me to stay here while I waited for Blaine, but also for showing us such kindness. You allowed us to be us for the first time, and for that, I cannot thank you enough,” Kurt said as he walked up to Antoin and pulled him into a hug.

“It was nothing, Kurt. I’m just glad I could be here to help. I’m glad I got to meet the two of you. You are an amazing couple. I just wish I had been able to find what you have, but I have always been too afraid to try. Who knows, maybe one day?” Antoin said with a sad smile.

“As Kurt said, thank you for everything you have done for both of us. I now consider you a friend. We will write to you when we get settled. That way, if you ever feel like visiting Venice, you will find a friendly place to stay,” Blaine said, shaking Antoin’s hand.

“I might just take you up on that offer one day,” Antoin replied. “Okay, you two, your carriage awaits.”

With a smile, Blaine reached down for Kurt’s hand to guide him to the carriage, knowing this would be the last time he would be able to for a long while. The trip to Moscow was slow, but at least they were able to be together. Once in Moscow, they were able to book passage on a train that would leave for Italy in two days. Since neither had ever been to Moscow, they spent their time exploring, looking through all the shops they could. Kurt found a journal and decided he wanted to write about their time together.

Kurt had to laugh when Blaine walked up to him holding a nesting doll in his hand, a grin on his face mouthing, “Your’s are so much better,” he whispered.

“You’re crazy,” Kurt said, laughing his chest swelling with pride at the words Blaine had said.

“Well, you’re with me, so what does that say about you?” Blaine asked in a whispered tone so as not to be overheard, his eyebrows moving up and down comically.

“You might have a point,” Kurt said laughing, walking over to the shopkeeper to pay for his purchase.

Their first night on the train was… different. Neither one of them could sleep because of the sound the wheels made and the clacking of the rails. After the first few days, they were both so tired they could sleep through anything. At every stop, they would exit the train, eat a meal, and explore until it was time to depart once again. Kurt had been continuously writing in his journal, making sure to document everything they had seen and done that day.

Kurt had begun the first page with  _ their _ story, how and where they had first met, and how they had finally found each other. Somehow, doing so seemed important to him. He wanted to keep a record of his and Blaine’s life together. While exploring, if Kurt found a new flower he had never seen before, he would pick it, and press it between the pages of their story from that day. Some pages had multiple flowers on a single page because not a lot happened on those days, while other pages had none, taken up with just words.

Because the train cars had small curtains that covered only half of their window, Kurt and Blaine had to be careful of the time they spent together and what they allowed themselves to do. At night when it was dark, they would share kisses and snuggles. They never went any further, afraid that someone would discover them. When they were outside of the train, they walked a safe distance apart even though Blaine always craved more closeness with Kurt. Blaine wanted to hold his hand and hug him, but they both knew it wasn’t safe. They were both ready to be somewhere private so that they could reconnect. It had been almost a month by now and both were craving intimacy.

When they finally got off the train outside Venice, they realized how daunting their task was going to be to find the right villa. Out of the hundreds surrounded by miles and miles of canal, they were looking for one specific one.

“Where do we even begin?” Kurt asked, overwhelmed by the magnitude of their search.

“I don’t know, sweetheart. I really don’t,” Blaine answered, equally lost with where to begin their search. “It seemed so simple when we planned this trip. I guess I just assumed we would walk right up to it. I had no idea there would be so many villas here that would look so much alike, or that there would be this much water. I know I have read about Venice but I wasn’t expecting this in the least. I guess, for now, let's see if we can find an inn to stay at for tonight, and we will start fresh in the morning.”

“That sounds like a good idea. I know I’m looking forward to sleeping in a bed that is not inside a moving vehicle. It got us here faster than a carriage would have, but still, it will be nice to go to bed and wake up in the same place again,” Kurt said with a smile. He was also ready to be able to hold Blaine again, this being together and not at the same time was getting a bit old.

“I feel the same, sweetheart. Let’s go see what we can find and then go and have dinner. I am ready for something other than tavern food,” Blaine said, looking around the deserted spot where they currently stood, making sure no one was around before quickly placing a kiss on Kurt’s lips. “Love you.”

“Love you, too,” Kurt said with a smile.

They found an inn and registered as brothers under the names Blaine and Kurt Andreyev from Saint Petersburg, Russia. When they got to their room, they found that even though they would be able to share a room, they wouldn’t comfortably be able to share a bed. Instead of the standard size bed, there were two tiny ones that were wide enough for one person only.

“Come on, seriously,” Kurt said, wanting to cry. He had gotten used to sleeping next to Blaine and didn’t know if he would be able to sleep without him again.

“It’s ok, sweetheart. It’s only for a few days. We will figure something out, I promise,” Blaine said, pulling Kurt into his arms and placing his lips on Kurt’s forehead. He wasn’t really happy about the situation either, but at least they will still be together.

“Will things always be stacked against us? Isn’t our sexuality enough?” Kurt sighed out as he lowered his head to rest on Blaine’s shoulder and wrapped his arms around Blaine’s waist.

“You know what, I don’t see my sexuality as a stack against me. If I wasn’t who I am,  _ what I am _ , I wouldn’t have you. Trust me, sweetheart, I wouldn’t change you or what we have for anything,” Blaine said and then kissed the top of Kurt’s head.

“I wouldn’t either, Blaine. I promise. I guess I just needed to vent,” Kurt said, pulling his head off of Blaine’s shoulder so he could look at him.

“Glad to hear it,” Blaine said with a smile, leaning in to kiss Kurt again. “Now, come on. Let’s go find something for dinner. I’m only assuming here, of course, but I think we'll have an option for Italian, Italian, or maybe even Italian.”

Kurt laughed, “You really are a nut. And before you say anything, yes, you are my nut,” Kurt said, laughing. He had needed that laugh.

“And very proud to be, sweetheart. I can promise you that,” Blaine said with a smile, placing a kiss on his lips before opening the door. He allowed Kurt to walk out and then shut the door behind them.

Not knowing anything about Venice, Blaine stopped and spoke with the innkeeper to see if he could recommend a good restaurant to eat. The gentleman said, ‘Mamma In Cucina,’ was the best. Whether or not a family member of the innkeeper's family ran it, Blaine didn’t care. He just needed a recommendation. Following the directions the innkeeper gave them, Kurt and Blaine were able to find the restaurant without difficulty. Choosing what to eat was a different matter.

“Any idea,” Kurt whispered, looking at the menu that was in front of him.

“None whatsoever,” Blaine answered back just as lost as Kurt. Blaine looked around at what the other diners were eating, and when their waiter came to them to see what they wanted, Blaine pointed at someone and asked what they were eating. When he was advised it was lasagna, Blaine opted for that, and so did Kurt.

“What do you think?” Kurt asked.

“It’s ok. My mom’s food is so much better. What do you think?” Blaine asked. He was feeling a little sad at the mention of his mom, missing her and his dad and the love they had always shown him. He knew, as a man, that he was expected to move away from his parents, but that didn’t make it feel better or make things easier. He had known he would miss them, but until that moment he hadn’t realized how much.

“I guess it is ok. I’ll be glad when we can get our own place so that I can cook. I guess I’m not big on tomato sauce,” Kurt said as he looked down at his plate. He tried to eat it, but just couldn’t make himself eat anymore.

“I feel the same. Are you ready to go back to our room?” Blaine asked. He was ready to change clothes and crawl into bed. The only drawback was that he wouldn’t be able to sleep with Kurt in his arms tonight. When their server came back with the bill, Blaine quickly paid and stood up, waiting for Kurt to do the same.

“I could have paid, or at least paid my part, Blaine,” Kurt said in a weird sort of voice.

Blaine tilted his head sideways, not understanding Kurt’s tone. “You can get the next one if you want,” Blaine said, wondering what was going on now.

“Fine,” Kurt said in an almost huff, and didn’t talk the rest of the way back to their room.

Blaine was so lost. He didn’t know what to say, or even what he had done wrong. Putting his hands in his pockets, he followed behind Kurt, stopping at their room as Kurt waited for him to open the door. Kurt walked in and went and sat on his bed, his head in his hands. Shutting the door, Blaine sighed and walked over to Kurt, kneeling in front of him.

“Sweetheart, do you want to talk about it? Did I do something that hurt you or hurt your feelings? If I did, I’m sorry. Please talk to me so that I don’t make the same mistake again,” Blaine almost begged, hating that Kurt seemed so upset and not knowing why. All of a sudden feeling like crying himself.

Kurt looked up and Blaine saw a look of utter sadness on his face. “You didn’t do anything wrong. I promise. I’m sorry I acted that way and that I made you feel like you’d done something wrong or upsetting. I don’t know what’s wrong with me” Kurt sighed. “My dad and I haven’t been getting along in such a long time. And sitting there in that restaurant made me really miss home, the familiar, you know? I know it is stupid, but I missed knowing what I ate. I missed knowing what I was doing and having some sort of control of my life,” Kurt answered sadly.

“I miss home, too, Kurt. I miss my parents, my horse,” Blaine said with a soft smile. “I miss knowing where I was and what I was going to be doing. I miss my mom’s cooking, and like you, I miss knowing what I was eating. I think we just need to give ourselves more time. Neither one of us has ever been away from our family or home, much less in another country. Let’s see what happens here. Who knows, we might like Venice, and if not, maybe we can find a way to go back home and still find a way to be together.”

“Thank you. Have I told you today that I love you?” Kurt asked, leaning forward and placing a kiss on Blaine’s forehead.

“You might have, but I really can’t remember,” Blaine said with a cheesy grin.

“Then, by all means, let’s rectify that right now,” Kurt said before leaning forward, taking Blaine’s face in his hands and kissing all over his face. “I love you, I love you, I love you,” punctuating every one with a kiss.

“I love you, too, sweetheart. Even though these beds don’t look comfortable, let’s try to get some sleep. Maybe we can find a better place to stay tomorrow,” Blaine said, kissing Kurt softly, trying not to deepen it. They were both well aware that for at least one night, they would be sleeping apart.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Thank you to my amazing beta JayHawkWrites as always for working through this for me. You are the best.

Blaine woke up to soft kisses on his face. “I just don’t know how I feel about being kissed like that by my brother,” Blaine said with a grin on his lips but kept his eyes closed until he felt as Kurt backed away.

“Just remember what you said when you want kisses later,” Kurt said as he started to back away, grinning to himself and wondering how long Blaine would last.

“Hey, I didn’t say stop. Come back here, you,” Blaine said, reaching out for him and pulling Kurt on top of him, placing sweet kisses all over Kurt’s face.

“What happened to not wanting kisses from your brother?” Kurt asked, rubbing his nose on Blaine’s.

“I’m allowed to change my mind,” Blaine said, kissing Kurt one more time. “You ready to see about finding something for breakfast? Maybe coffee and a pastry or something like that?” Blaine asked. He didn’t usually eat breakfast, but since he hadn’t eaten much of his dinner the night before he was feeling a little hungry.

“Sounds good. Let me go find the bathroom and get dressed unless you need to go first,” Kurt said, pushing himself off of Blaine’s chest

“No, I’m good. I’ll dress while you are gone,” Blaine said, watching as Kurt gathered his clothes and walked out of the room. Blaine dressed and waited for Kurt to come back, and then they headed out for the day. When they stopped at Gran Caffè Quadri for coffee and a pastry, Kurt and Blaine talked to the barista, Jionni, about the villa they were looking for.

“We were told that the lane in front of it is lined with Magnolia trees and that it’s beautiful. We were hoping to see it before we had to move on,” Blaine said before taking a bite of his pastry.

“Ahh, you are talking about ‘ _Casa DI Magnolia.’_ It is stunning, but also very private. No one has been inside it for years, well, except the family, of course. The last two owners were wonderful, but a bit eccentric,” the barista said with a smile.

“What do you mean by eccentric?” Kurt asked.

“Well, first, instead of putting their trees in front of their own villa, they put them on the other side of the canal, which made no sense. When asked why they simply smiled and said they would be able to see them better from their balcony and the flowers would mask the smell of the canals. Everyone thought it would be the opposite, that they would be better directly in front of their own villa, but they knew what they wanted,” Jionni said with a smile.

“We definitely need to check that out,” Blaine said to Kurt, like they hadn’t already decided to go and see it. As if it wasn’t the only reason they had actually come to Italy to begin with.

“Well, here is the address,” the barista said, passing a piece of paper to Blaine. “Don’t get your hopes up about getting inside. No one but the family has been allowed in since the owners passed almost eighteen years ago. The inside of the villa is massive. It seems bigger on the inside than out. There is a library filled with floor to ceiling bookshelves packed with books on any subject you could think of. There’s also a full music room with every type of musical instrument known to man. Apparently, the gentleman, Blaine, was very talented and performed a lot for the people that lived close. His brother, Kurt, was an avid reader and designer. He was the one who oversaw the construction of the villa and designed it to his liking. I was never old enough to attend, but I am told they held many wonderful parties. I always wished I was old enough because my parents would talk about those parties for days.” Jionni said with a wistful expression. “They were much loved.”

“Why do you think that was?” Kurt asked.

“They did a lot for the community. If someone had a problem, they were there to help. When Signora Bianchi’s husband passed, so did her only income. She was about to lose it all. The two brothers stepped in and took care of everything. They offered her a job as their housekeeper. Before her husband died, she had twelve other women working under her and she never even had to lift a finger. She just gave orders. From what I hear, she was still there until the day she passed. After the Andresano’s brought her into their home, she passed her house on to her eldest son. He was a jack of all trades and they used his expertise for any repairs needed inside their villa. It has been said that the Andresano’s went so far as to sometimes break something just to bring him in and keep him actively employed,” Jionni said with a far off look in his eyes.

“They sound wonderful,” Kurt said, looking at him.

“They were. They did a lot for numerous people. I got to meet them when I was around twelve. Some of my friends and I were being stupid and wreckless, constantly getting into trouble. My parents didn’t know what to do with me anymore. The Andresano’s stepped in. They gave me something to do, helped keep me out of trouble, and taught me all about responsibility. When I was old enough, they even helped me get this shop. They put up the money, but I was the one in charge of running it and paying back the loan. They didn’t believe in handouts, they believed in hand-ups. Only after they passed did I find out that even though I was paying them back the money they had put out for me, they were secretly putting the money I paid into an account for me. When they died, every last little bit was returned to me. If it hadn’t been for them, I’m not sure where I would be. They did things of that nature for a lot of the people in the area.” Jionni took a moment to collect himself before proceeding any further.

“You know what's funny?” Jionni said, looking at Blaine and Kurt like he was seeing them for the first time. “You look like you could be their brothers. The only thing different besides your age, of course, is your hairstyles. I wonder if you are somehow related?” Jionni asked before shaking his head.

“That would be wonderful if we were,” Blaine said with a smile before standing up. “I guess we have kept you long enough. We need to move on. Thank you for the information you gave us about the villa. I am sure we will be back. Who knows, we might decide to settle somewhere close.”

Kurt nodded, standing up as well. “It was really nice meeting you, Jionni. Hopefully, we will see you again soon.”

Blaine stepped back and allowed Kurt to pay the bill, even though he didn’t really like doing so. He liked taking care of Kurt but understood how Kurt felt, that he wanted to take care of Blaine as well.

After leaving Gran Caffè Quadri, Kurt and Blaine took their first gondola ride. Blaine loved it, Kurt, not so much. They gave the gondolier the address and sat back and looked around at the places they were passing. They didn’t know if they would be here long term but knew they would need to find a place to stay at least until after Princess Annunziata’s wedding. There was always the option that they might choose to move on from this beautiful place. Blaine didn’t know how much the Princess would pay, so he just hoped he had enough money to keep them going.

Blaine figured once they left Casa DI Magnolia, they would need to go and exchange the rest of their rubles for the Italian lira. They had managed to exchange enough to hold them over for a few days but would need to exchange the rest soon. Blaine and Kurt knew they were in the right place before the gondolier even slowed. There on the right side of the canal was the line of magnolia trees, quite a bit taller than they dreamed but just as beautiful. When they stepped onto the landing in front of the villa they had traveled all this way to see took their breath away. The property was beautiful and peaceful. Looking up, they could see the balcony they had stood on in their dream. Kurt wanted to grab Blaine’s hand and squeeze it, completely overcome with feelings. Instead, he simply moved closer to Blaine.

“Why does this place feel so familiar?” Kurt asked in a whispered tone.

“I don’t know, sweetheart, but I feel it too. I feel like I have been here before. Like I could close my eyes and describe the inside of that house as easily as I could the one I left in Saint Petersburg. I don’t understand any of this. Do you think we just go up and knock?” Blaine asked and then looked at Kurt.

“I don’t know, but they are going to think we are crazy if we walk up and say, ‘ _Yes, do you have a statue in the form of a gondola in your back parlor_?’ They are going to slam the door in our faces,” Kurt snarked.

Blaine was about to respond when they heard the front door of the villa open and watched as a beautiful woman stepped outside. She looked at them for a few minutes before a smile broke on her face. “Kurt and Blaine, won’t you come in?We have been expecting you,” she said, stepping sideways, her arm held out toward the door motioning them in.

“How do you know our names? And what do you mean _we have been expecting you_?” Kurt asked, hesitantly stepping just inside the doorway.

“Come. Follow me and all will be explained. My name is Annalisa, by the way, and it is nice to meet you both finally.”

“I don’t know if we should follow you anywhere until we get a few answers,” Kurt said, stepping in the villa as far as the entryway and stopping beside Blaine.

Before Annalisa could answer they heard the sound of heels coming down the steps. Descending the stairs was the most beautiful woman either had ever seen. She got to the bottom step before noticing them and stopped dead in her tracks, her head tilted sideways and her eyes darting back and forth between them.

“Oh, wow. It was all true,” she whispered as tears started sliding down her cheeks.

“Excuse me, but what was all true?” Blaine asked, reaching out to take Kurt’s hand. He felt like he needed to hold some part of him as feelings washed over him and memories that were not his own flooded his brain.

She looked at Annalisa, who shrugged, looking back at her. “Kurt, Blaine, I would like you to meet my mother, Gianna.”

“Have you shown them yet…?” Gianna asked.

“No, I was just taking them when you came downstairs. Would you like to come with us, Mother?” Annalisa said, walking up to Gianna and place a kiss on her cheek.

“Wait, before we go anywhere, can you please tell us what’s going on?” Kurt asked, looking at the two women, wondering why he had memories of the two of them when he had never met them before.

“I apologize. My father’s told me how confused you might be. They said they were when their time came,” Gianna said, not able to take her eyes off of Kurt and Blaine.

“I feel so lost,” Blaine whispered to Kurt.

“I’m sorry, Daddy... umm, sorry, Blaine. If you will follow us, everything will be explained to you,” Gianna said, wiping a tear off of her face, turning around and walking toward where Blaine and Kurt knew the parlor would be.

After opening the door, Gianna stepped back and motioned Kurt and Blaine to walk in. And there, in the back corner, right where they knew it would be was the statue of a gondola. Kurt took a deep breath and walked over to it. Without really knowing why he pressed the black button on the base and stepped back as the little door opened. Kurt bent down and pulled the book out before standing back up.

“We’ll leave you two alone while you read that. I know you must be very confused, but everything should be made clear by the letter my grandfathers left for you,” Annalisa said, linking her arm with her mother and walking out the door, closing it softly behind them.

Kurt slowly made his way over to Blaine, reaching for his hand, they both went and sat down. Kurt opened the book to the place where a gold silk bookmark had been placed. It looked so old and faded as if it had been there forever. Kurt had always loved books, especially the smell that an old book had, like the one he held in his hands now.

_Dear Kurt and Blaine,_

_Welcome to the next phase of your lives. You are the seventh in a line of what we like to call the next generation. I know how very confused you are right now because at one point we stood where you stand now and felt the same confusion. Hopefully, this letter can clear a little of that up for you. I know how crazy this all must seem, but before long, you will realize just how amazingly wonderful your life is going to be._

_Let me start at the beginning. Our story, the story of us in previous generations, started with a wizard in the year of our lord 1170. He found us worthy of passing on the most amazing gift that could ever be given, in a sense, eternity. He promised a life blessed with riches, family, and a love that lasted through all time. When he first told us about this, of course, we were skeptical. One by one, his ‘prophecies’ I guess you would call them, came true. In the year we turn seventeen, we started dreaming of each other, and before our eighteenth birthday, we met._

_The first dream I ever had about my Blaine was on February the eighteenth, and his was the same night. We soon discovered that we not only had our dreams started on the same night, but we also shared the same date of birth._

“How weird, I have the same birthday they did,” Blaine said.

“You’re joking, right?” Kurt whispered.

“Why, what's wrong?” Blaine questioned, wondering why with everything going on Kurt would seem to have a problem with his date of birth.

“I was born on February the eighteenth as well,” Kurt said even more confused than before.

“Huh… I feel strangely more connected to them somehow,” Blaine said.

“You know, I kind of do, too,” Kurt said, leaning in and kissing Blaine before starting back with the letter.

_When we found this book inside our statue, everything became clear. Our questions seemed to be answered. I am sure you are questioning why in this lifetime, we went with a gondola as our statue. There is a simple answer to that question, which, before long you will remember on your own. We always do, but I will tell you ‘our’ story now anyway._

_I was lost in thought the day I met my Blaine. My nose was stuck in a book as it always was. Even though I really hated riding in a gondola, I needed to get somewhere quickly. I took a steadying breath and stepped inside the first gondola I had ridden in in over a year. Everything was smooth. The weather was clear and it was nice and warm. My gondolier was singing for me and he was really cute. Hey, I was allowed to look as long as I never touched, as if I would ever want to touch someone else when I had my Blaine._

_Well anyway, we were riding along when I heard the first scream. When I looked up, I saw a gondola careening towards the one I was in, a curly-headed man screaming and holding on to the side of his out of control boat. It would seem it was his gondolier's first day on the job. He had gotten nervous and had drank some wine to calm his nerves. He barely was able to stand on the back of the boat without falling off. While I watched, he about hit two other people before he finally hit us. My gondola ended up capsizing, all of us involved ended up in the canal, and the book I was reading sank. Blaine, ever the gentleman he was, dove down to the bottom of that murky canal to get my book for me. It was never readable again after that, but he would have won my heart that day if he hadn’t already owned it. We have had a long and happy life together, as I know the two of you will._

_I am going to let you in on a secret that a lot of people have questioned us about, something special between my Blaine and me, and now you. A lot of people questioned our placement of my favorite tree across the canal instead of in front of our own villa. We made up a good lie, said we could see them better and it masked the canal smell. Truth be told, the villa across the canal was painted a hideous green color and when we sat on our balcony, Signora Lucia had a habit of walking naked in front of her window. These two men were not interested in seeing that._

_Now then, onto more important matters. As I said earlier, the first Kurt and Blaine, who we and you technically are, were blessed by a mage. He told us because we willingly helped him when so many others had passed him by, that for every blessing we bestowed on him, he would bestow on us tenfold, and he has. We have had children, financial security, and through the Vandermir Foundation, we have been able to help so many others. We were gifted with our son, Giovanni, the day he was born. One of our upstairs maids found herself with child. She had been married but lost her husband before finding out she was pregnant. She decided she couldn’t handle a child so soon after losing her husband. One morning we woke up, and she was gone. She left her precious son behind for us to raise, and oh how we loved that little boy. We were set financially, we had each other and our precious little boy, we couldn’t have been happier, that is, until our sweet Gianna came along a year later._

_We got Gianna the same way we got Giovanni, except her mamma had never married. She was alone in the world and even though we offered to help her as much as she needed, she opted to leave and left Gianna behind for us to raise. We have had a wonderful life together. Blaine and I have shared 58 wonderful years and I can’t think of anyone I would rather have spent it with. We have raised two beautiful children and had the joy of seeing five grandchildren born._

_Once you are ready, go explore the villa, it is now yours. All we ask is that you love it as much as we have. It’s part of the foundation's holdings. Since you ARE the foundation, it is yours to use however you see fit. You can also move on from here and find a place you feel is better suited to your needs. Wherever you choose to settle, you can also choose where to keep your statue. When you pass to the next life it will pass to the foundation for its care at that time._

_When you are ready, our beautiful Annalisa will go over the foundation's holdings and the financial information. All foundation funds are, from this moment on, yours to do as you see fit. The running of the foundation will transfer to you on your eighteenth birthday and will be yours to run until your time comes to leave this life. When that time comes, you can bequeath whatever funds you see fit to anyone of your choosing, and the rest will stay with the foundation under the guardian of your choice. This responsibility of the guardian is usually passed on to the firstborn granddaughter, but we leave this decision in your hands completely. When your time comes, create a statue as we have. Something that has meaning for both of you. Write your letter to the next generation to point them on their way._

_Soon, you will remember all we have done. Until that time, the book is available to guide and remind you of the wonderful lives we have lived. In the book, a place is always left for the next generation to write the tale of their lives. Since the book was created so long ago, new pages have never needed to be added, enough space is always just there. Move the fabric to the beginning of your tale and then place this along with your letter in the base of the statue I am sure Blaine will happily work to create._

_Our time is ending and yours has just begun. Be happy in all things, find joy in the smallest of things, laugh just to make people question, or just plant a magnolia tree..._

_Always,_

_Kurt and Blaine_

“This is crazy. What does it mean the foundation money is ours?” Kurt asked.

“Did it really say the villa was ours and that we could stay here if we wanted to?” Blaine asked just as the door to the parlor reopened and Annalisa walked back in.

“Yes,” Annalisa said as she entered the room. “This house belongs to the foundation, and you and Kurt are now, and have always been, the foundation. This foundation was started in 1171 by your previous selves. All monies in the Vandermir Foundation accounts were earned and deposited by you. When this all started, the Kurt of the time was a painter and Blaine carved or created statues. That is how the statues that have been left started initially. Unfortunately, he was the only one who ever worked with stone, so you have always had to work with someone else. Anyway, their works sold well. They put their money straight into the foundation so they could help others.” Annalisa took a moment to make sure that Kurt and Blaine were still following along and not completely overwhelmed with the information they had learned.

“When it was all set up, it was decided that all the financial decisions would pass to you, but the running of the actual foundation would stay with the guardian of that time, namely me for now,” Annalisa said with a smile. “My grandfather’s said on the eighteenth birthday of the next generation, everything would pass to them.”

“So, can I ask what the foundation is, or does?” Blaine asked.

“The foundation was started so that funds would be available from one life to the next. All monies would be transferred into the foundation's accounts so that when the next generation started out, it would be there for their use instead of entrusting a family member with everything and hoping they do the right thing. As far as the foundation itself is concerned, it is used for charitable works. Every next generation has doubled, sometimes tripled the money in the account. That money is used to feed people who don’t have enough to eat. We help people who are about to lose their homes. My grandfathers did a lot for the people in their community.”

“Will we be able to continue on with that,” Blaine asked Annalisa, looking at Kurt to see if he agreed. If all this was real, and they had this money, it was apparently both of theirs. Blaine could only smile when he saw Kurt nod in agreement.

“We would hope you would want to. Those were just my instructions on running the foundation until it was time for you to take over. I was to keep up with the charities started by my grandfathers. You know it's strange, I started hearing about their story probably from the day I was born. I was the firstborn granddaughter so the running of the foundation, of course, fell to me. I remember listening to them tell me about their lives. It was like my personal fairy tale. But as I grew older, I started thinking it was just the rambling of two old men. I loved them both, but their story was just so unbelievable,” Annalisa said and then stood up. “I am going to head home now and can come back tomorrow after you’ve both had some time to process everything you’ve just learned.” Kurt and Blaine both nodded that they would like that. “Explore the villa to your heart's content. Choose which room or rooms you want for yours and fresh linens will be put on the beds.”

“So, you don’t live here?” Kurt asked her.

“No, I don’t. This is basically the foundation's headquarters. I come here a few times a week to check on everything and to make sure nothing is needed. Mama comes with me sometimes because she still misses her Daddy and Papa, even after 17 years,” Annalisa said with a soft smile, thinking about her mother and grandfathers.

“So you and your mother didn’t see anything wrong with their relationship?” Kurt asked, needing to get that question answered.

“No, Kurt, never. The people outside these walls might, but the people in here, the people who loved them had no problem with it at all. They did, however, always keep separate bedrooms for appearances, even though from what my Mama said, they only ever used the one. I must go now. I will see you tomorrow so that we can go over some paperwork. Feel free to stay, or if you prefer to go somewhere else, that is an option as well. There are two spare sets of keys in the library,” Annalisa said before placing a kiss on each of their cheeks, turning around and walking out the door.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Thank you to my beta JayHawkWrites as always for reading over this and correcting my many punctuation and ‘other’ errors. You are the best.

Chapter 11

After watching Annalisa leave, Kurt and Blaine sat back down. Kurt flipped through their book and looked over the different stories. They described the different statues that had been left and the stories behind each of the statues. They all seemed familiar to them, yet not at the same time. Kurt almost felt like if he could just tilt his head the right direction, all of the memories would come flooding back. What threw him off though, was that every single story in that book seemed to have been written by the same writer, and all matched his own handwriting. Kurt closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to make any singular part of this seem real and make sense, wondering for the hundredth time how any of this was even possible.

“Do you want to go explore before we go back to the inn?” Blaine asked softly, feeling just as lost as Kurt looked.

“So, we’re going to go back to the inn?” Kurt asked, disappointment in his tone. Yes, at the inn they could share a room and have a place where they could be themselves. Unfortunately, it didn’t allow for them to share a bed and after sleeping with Blaine’s arms wrapped around him, Kurt had had a hard time sleeping last night without him right next to him.

“We need to go at least to get our belongings and check out. I figured if you want, we can explore the villa first and see if we think we will be comfortable here. If we don’t think we will be, then we can always find somewhere else to check into. Trust me, sweetheart, that room will not work for us long term. I need you in my arms and in my bed, and that can’t happen there,” Blaine answered, pulling Kurt into his arms and lowering his head so his lips could brush Kurt’s.

“I like the sound of that,” Kurt whispered, pulling slightly away so he could look at Blaine. “Let’s go explore.”

They started on the ground floor. The first room Kurt and Blaine entered was the library, and Kurt was in love. The walls of the room were lined, floor to ceiling with bookcases made of dark cherry-colored wood. Every bookshelf was full of more books than Kurt had seen in his life. Beautiful spines in every color were like a form of art that promised many hours of enjoyment. Scattered around the room were big comfortable looking chairs. The kind of chairs a person could sink into and never want to move again. Beautiful pictures hung on every available space on the walls or in small easels scattered around on tabletops. A huge brick fireplace on the main wall of the room promised warmth on cold days. The room felt comfortable, peaceful, and Kurt knew he would spend a lot of time there should they choose to stay. In the corner of the room, by a big bay window, was a chess set unlike any they had ever seen. The pieces on the board, instead of being the normal queen, rook, castle, or pawn, had wizards, dragons, knights, and kings. It was the most unique set either had seen.

While staring at the chess set, Kurt saw something out of the corner of his eye that caught his attention. He knew what it was before walking up to it. On a small round table, on display the way a precious piece of artwork would have been was a book that had been ruined beyond repair by water. The pages and cover were water-stained and the ink had almost faded. Kurt ran his finger across the cover and got an overwhelming feeling of love at what that book actually stood for. It was the book that Blaine had dove to the bottom of the canal to rescue on the day they had met in their previous lifetime. Closing his eyes and touching the book, Kurt could almost see it happening, like a memory flashing in front of his eyes. He could only smile, falling more in love with Blaine than ever.

The next room that they entered was a room that could have been designed with Blaine in mind. The walls, like in the library, had been paneled in dark cherry. In the center of the room sat a piano, shiny and black. Hanging above it was a beautiful crystal chandelier. Blaine walked over to it and ran his fingers across the keys. He could see that it had been played a lot and had been loved very much. It was in perfect tune, and not a single smudge could be seen marring its surface. Blaine could only smile because he knew, if they stayed, this would be his room; this is where he would spend a lot of his time. He had missed playing the last month.

Blaine had always played several hours a day just for the joy he got from it. It helped him relax, clear his head, and find peace. Blaine slowly made his way around the room, looking at all the other instruments sitting in their stands. There was a violin, a cello, a lute, and even a harp. They were all instruments he had always wanted to learn to play but had never been given a chance. Who knows, maybe now he could.

Next, they walked around the ballroom with its shiny wood floors. Like all the other rooms in the villa so far, it too had been decorated with beautiful artwork. On the main wall was a line of french doors that led out and onto a balcony. Kurt and Blaine stepped outside and looked down at a beautifully landscaped garden that had a fountain encircled with different statues and topiaries. Lush trees had been planted along the perimeter. Benches had been placed under the trees, offering shade on sunny days or a place to escape from the warmth and noise that accompanied most balls. In the middle of the garden area, slightly away from the fountain, was a single magnolia tree that made Kurt smile.

After checking out all the rooms downstairs, except the kitchen which they decided to save for last, they made their way upstairs and knew instantly which room would be theirs. It was warm and inviting. It was at the front of the house, and French doors led out to yet another balcony. Unlike the rooms downstairs that had dark paneled walls, this room had been painted in a light tan color, making the room seem lighter. A four-poster canopy bed sat diagonally in one of the corners.

One thing Kurt loved about the bed was that at all four corners, heavy drapes had been hung. During the day, the drapes could be pulled back with tasseled cords, and at night they could be untied and allowed to enclose the bed. The closed curtains would afford warmth during cooler times of the year, and additional privacy for the occupants of the bed. Kurt and Blaine were not familiar with how the house ran. They weren’t sure whether or not maids just opened the door and came in the room the way a lot of houses ran or did they wait for the room's occupants to leave before entering. If they stayed, Kurt wanted to speak to the housekeeper about that. He would prefer them to wait for himself and Blaine to leave before entering.

Kurt walked around the room and opened all the doors. He found two large closets that offered more space than either one of them would need. Kurt opened the next door and found a restroom attached to theirs which would be very convenient. On the opposite end of that room, there was another door. Kurt went through and opened it, finding another bedroom.

“I guess that is what Annalisa said by they had separate bedrooms, for propriety's sake, but always slept in the same room,” Blaine said, wrapping his arms around Kurt’s waist and placing his chin on Kurt's shoulder.

Kurt turned in Blaine’s arms and raised his own arms to wrap around Blaine’s neck, lowering his head to place a soft kiss. “That would make things easier. Are we supposed to make it look like we each sleep in our own bed, or in this house will it matter?”

“I don’t know. I guess we need just to play it by ear tonight and we can talk to Annalisa tomorrow. I know what I want, Kurt. I want us to share a bed always. I have had enough separation. Now then, if you’re ready, we can go back to the inn and check out. On the way, we can stop by the kitchen and talk to the housekeeper about changing the linens in here. It looks clean, but I would just be more comfortable with fresh sheets on the bed,” Blaine said, placing another soft kiss on Kurt’s lips.

“I feel the same. Who knows when they were changed last. Yes, the room looks clean, but no one has stayed in here for over seventeen years. I wouldn’t think the linens would have been changed often,” Kurt said, reaching his hand to take Blaine’s as they turned to walk out of the room. Outside the walls of this house, they had to stay separate, but inside they could just be them. 

Things didn’t go well with the housekeeper at all. When Blaine and Kurt knocked on the open door of the office they had been advised was hers, the look she shot them was so full of hatred that Blaine automatically moved Kurt so he was standing behind him.

“We have decided on the room that will be ours. It is the second door on the left side,” Blaine said, standing up straight. He had never been looked at the way she was looking at them.

“That is the master bedroom, young man,” she said, looking down her nose at him.

“I understand that,” Blaine said. “We will need the linens changed in that room. That is the one we have chosen to use.”

“I guess you will want the adjoining room changed as well. I guess the sheets on those beds just aren’t good enough for you,” she said, looking at Blaine like he was below her.

“The adjoining room is fine for now, just please have the master changed,” Blaine said, trying to stay polite even if she was anything but.

“I don’t understand how I am supposed to work around people like you,” she said, this time looking at Blaine over the top of the rims of her glasses.

“Excuse me,” Blaine said now getting upset. He had never been treated like this before.

“I will have clean linens taken up to that room, and you can change them yourselves if you want them done so badly,” the housekeeper said, bowing her head in a dismissive manner.

Kurt had had enough. He walked from behind Blaine’s back, put his hands on his hips, and looked at her. “Excuse me, but isn’t your title here ‘housekeeper?’” Kurt asked.

“Yes, it most certainly is,” she answered Kurt, now looking at him with anger.

“Then I would suggest you do your job before you no longer have one,” Kurt said, now walking in front of Blaine.

“Just who do you think you are talking to?” she asked, pulling herself up to her full height.

“I am talking to the woman who has a job to do, and better remember how to do it. We will be going out, and we expect that the linens will be changed before we get back. The sheets on the bed will be marked in such a way that if not changed, we will know it,” Kurt said, looking at her for a minute like he was daring her to complain.

Blaine could barely keep a straight face as they walked away from that horrid woman. Blaine had never seen Kurt act like that before, and it was sexy as hell. “You were magnificent. How do you plan on marking the sheet? Blaine asked Kurt

“I have no clue, but it sounded good didn’t it,” Kurt said, laughing before placing a kiss on Blaine’s cheek.

“Let’s hope we don’t come back to a snake in our bed,” Blaine said, laughing himself.

“I know. I really like this house, and I feel like I could learn to be at home here, but I don’t know about being around that woman. I didn’t like her attitude or the way she treated us,” Kurt said.

“I feel the same. Maybe we need to talk to Annalisa tomorrow about how the whole staffing thing works,” Blaine said. “Now then, if you are ready, let's get out of here.”

With a smile, Kurt leaned in and placed a kiss on Blaine’s lips. They both knew once they walked out the door of the villa, it would be a while before they could allow themselves to touch again. Kurt and Blaine took their time, looking around the city that would now be their home, for now anyway. They walked far enough apart that no one would suspect they were a couple, but close enough that occasionally they could allow their hands to brush against each others.

When Kurt and Blaine got to the inn they had been staying at, they repacked their belongings and went down and informed the innkeeper they would no longer need their room. They were almost back to the villa when they realized they had forgotten to get the keys Annalisa had said were in the office. They would now need to knock to gain entrance and hope they would be allowed back in.

Blaine knocked on the door, waited for a few minutes, and got no response. He knocked again, harder, and waited once again. He raised his hand, intending to beat on the door this time, but right as his hand would have touched the door, it was finally opened by the housekeeper. A very disgruntled looking doorman standing not far from the door, shaking his head, letting them know that the housekeeper had purposely made them wait. Something would definitely have to be done.

Dinner was another tomato-based affair. Not that it didn’t taste good, but it was too heavy for either of them. Kurt and Blaine both just picked at their meal before finally giving up. “Maybe we can talk to Annalisa tomorrow about the menu as well,” Kurt said, standing up and walking away from the table with a grimace.

“You know, the staff of this household is really going to love us,” Blaine said before standing up and following Kurt out.

Kurt reached for Blaine’s hand as they walked. “I just feel like the dragon lady is pushing everyone’s buttons. If not for her, I feel like there would be no problem,” Kurt said. It had been a long emotional day, and he was ready to relax. “Will you play for me tonight?”

“Of course, what would you like to hear?” Blaine asked as they walked into the music room. Blaine loved it when Kurt sat beside him on the piano bench and lay his head on Blaine’s shoulder.

“Do you remember the song you were playing when you first saw me?” Kurt didn’t even get to finish asking before Blaine started playing his favorite Vivaldi composition, remembering how Kurt had looked that night.

“I only played part of it, because this particular concerto can take over an hour to play,” Blaine said, kissing the top of Kurt’s head.

“I can’t believe you remembered what you were playing,” Kurt whispered with a smile on his face.

“I can’t believe you thought I would forget anything about that night or you, Kurt. My life began the moment I saw you across that room. You were real, literally my dream come true. Until you stood in front of me, a real person, I had been only half living. You made me whole,” Blaine whispered, placing another kiss on the top of Kurt’s head. “Let’s go to bed, sweetheart.”

Blaine held out his hand for Kurt to take and helped him stand. Hand in hand, they made their way upstairs to the bedroom they had chosen as their own. Once the door was softly closed behind them, and the lock slipped into place, Blaine pulled Kurt into his arms. He slowly moved his head so their lips brushed together in a soft and gentle kiss. Blaine licked across Kurt’s bottom lip, begging for entry. When Kurt’s mouth opened, Blaine slid his tongue in and signed. Since leaving Russia, they had only shared small kisses, but nothing like either one of them wanted. They were always watching their backs in unfamiliar situations. Tonight, though, they could be themselves again. Share themselves with each other again.

Blaine pulled slowly away from the kiss so that he could look into Kurt’s eyes. He wanted Kurt so badly but didn’t want to do anything he wasn’t ready for. Blaine raised his hands and slowly started unbuttoning Kurt’s shirt, slipping his hands under it at the shoulder, slowly moving his hands down so that the shirt slipped off and fell to the floor forgotten. He lowered his head and started kissing Kurt again, placing kisses across his jaw and down his neck. His hands slipped between their bodies and slowly unbuckled Kurt’s belt and unbuttoned his trousers.

“Stop me if I do something you don’t want, sweetheart. I need you so badly right now,” Blaine whispered against Kurt’s throat. He slowly ran his hands under the waistband of Kurt's pants, and down across his ass, pulling Kurt closer, allowing their hard cocks to connect momentarily the way they both needed. Blaine stepped back just enough so that Kurt’s pants could slide to the floor before grabbing his ass again, and pulling Kurt hard against him.

Blaine almost lost his mind when Kurt wrapped his arms around his neck and started placing kisses and small bites down his neck, sucking on his earlobe, marking Blaine in a way they had never allowed themselves to do before. The noises coming from his love's mouth were driving Blaine crazy and going straight to his already painfully hard cock. Blaine couldn’t stop his hips from thrusting forward, needing that connection with Kurt so badly, he felt he might explode from it.

“Please don’t stop, Blaine. I need you so badly, please don’t ever stop,” Kurt moaned out against the skin of Blaine’s neck right in the curve where it met his shoulder. Kurt had learned quickly how kissing or licking that spot turned Blaine on. He gently bit down and was rewarded with a deep guttural moan from Blaine, and had his hips thrusting hard forward again. That connection sent shock waves up Kurt’s spine, and straight to his cock.

Blaine attacked Kurt’s mouth, needing to taste every centimeter of him. He shoved his tongue in and chased Kurt’s before sucking it into his own mouth. Blaine only removed his lips when he absolutely needed to and both of them were gasping for air. When their breath was caught enough, they attacked each other again in hard and passionate kisses. They were kissing like they never had before and they couldn't get enough of each other. Blaine pulled his lips away, releasing Kurt long enough to rip his own shirt off, not even taking time to unbutton it first. He didn’t care that every button snapped off and went flying across the room. Blaine couldn’t bring himself to care that he had ruined a perfectly good shirt. He would replace the damn thing later. Right now he just needed to feel Kurt’s naked skin against his as soon as possible.

Blaine quickly unbuckled his belt, unfastened his trousers, and slipped them down his legs and onto the floor. He had purposely left both of their undergarment on. Even though they had shared intimacies in the past, they had yet seen each other completely naked, and that was something Blaine intended to savor. He slowly led Kurt to their bed and pulled the covers down. Blaine helped Kurt onto the bed before joining him.

Even though Blaine wanted Kurt so badly, hurt with a need for him like he had never felt before, Blaine had something else in mind for tonight, something else he wanted to do for Kurt. Never taking his eyes off of him, Blaine started kissing down Kurt’s neck and chest. He took his time to suckle both of Kurt’s nipples, running his tongue across the hard nubs and blowing warm air across them before continuing to kiss down Kurt's stomach. Blaine slowly ran his tongue around the outside edge of Kurt’s belly button and then continued to kiss down, watching Kurt the whole time from under his lashes. Blaine loved watching Kurt, knowing that he wanted Blaine as much as Blaine wanted him.

Kissing down Kurt’s body, Blaine skipped the part of Kurt that needed his attention the most. Instead, he moved to lick down Kurt’s inner thighs, biting gently into his tender flesh.

Kurt moaned out, “ _Blaine do something, **please** do something_.” He thrust his hips off the bed to let Blaine know that he needed more. Blaine was only too happy to oblige him. He ran his hands across the pronounced bulge encased in Kurt’s undergarments, causing yet another moan to escape Kurt’s beautiful lips. Looking into Kurt’s eyes, Blaine grasped the waistband of Kurt’s undergarments and waited for a nod from him before he slowly slid them down. What Blaine saw made his mouth water. Kurt was beautifully hard, his cock lying heavy against his abdomen. Blaine was in awe of him. He leaned down and gently sucked one of Kurt’s balls into his mouth, massaging it with his tongue, before switching to the second and giving it the same treatment. Judging from the moans he heard escape from Kurt’s lips, he could only assume Kurt was enjoying it.

This was something new for both of them, but something Blaine had dreamed of doing every single night on that train. He had held Kurt close and thought about the things they could do to and for each other once they had some privacy. He had been just as disappointed as Kurt the night before when he had walked into their room and found that the beds wouldn’t allow them to do any of that.

Starting at the root Blaine licked up Kurt’s cock with the tip of his tongue, across the vein that he could almost feel throbbing just under the skin. Kurt started to moan and squirm under him, and Blaine felt proud that he could bring such a response from him just using his tongue. When Blaine got to the head, he ran his tongue around the edge and across the slit, tasting the precum. He liked the taste so much he wondered if he would become addicted to it. When Blaine heard Kurt moan again, “ _Please, Blaine, please,_ ” he knew it was time to do more.

Bracing himself on one of his elbows, Blaine gently pulled Kurt’s cock towards him and lowered his head, taking Kurt into his mouth. Moving slowly at first, Blaine slid his mouth down as much as he could, and then swirled his tongue before he slid his mouth back up. Gently sucking, Blaine began bobbing his head up and down, hollowing his cheeks, and gently massaging Kurt’s balls with his hand. When Kurt started bucking his hips, Blaine moved faster, sucked a little harder until Kurt’s warm cum filled his mouth. Blaine swallowed every drop before pulling off. “ _Yep_ ,” he thought. “ _I could totally become addicted to that._ ”

Kissing the head of Kurt’s cock one more time, Blaine kissed his way back up Kurt’s beautiful body until he was back at Kurt’s mouth. Blaine nibbled on Kurt’s lower lip and placed gentle kisses on them as Kurt tried to catch his breath. When his cock was too painful he didn’t feel he could take it any longer, Blaine straddled Kurt’s hips so that their cocks were against each other. He was happily surprised to find Kurt was already half-hard again. Leaning down, Blaine braced himself on his forearms on either side of Kurt’s head and started placing soft kisses on Kurt’s lips while he thrust his hips down, connecting with Kurt’s rapidly hardening cock.

Blaine was throbbing by this point, needing to find his own release, but at the same time wanting to take care of Kurt. Blaine started grinding down on Kurt harder, faster, arching his back and gyrating his hips. He was so close and he was straining so hard to hold off just a little longer. When Kurt screamed out his name and popped up his hips, Blaine knew Kurt had found his release again, and finally allowed himself to slip over the edge reaching his own. He came harder than he ever had before.

“I love you,” Blaine whispered, trying to catch his breath. He rolled off of Kurt’s body onto his side, pulling Kurt with him. Blaine wasn’t ready to let go of him yet. He still needed to have Kurt next to him, to hold him close. Blaine quickly realized how much he loved cuddling with Kurt, especially after what they had just shared. It had been amazing and Blaine could hardly wait for the next thing they could try together.

“I love you, too, Blaine. So very much,” Kurt whispered back, keeping his face turned, not wanting to let Blaine see the doubt in his eyes. “That was amazing. Umm… where did you learn to do that?”

Blaine could hear the doubt in Kurt’s voice, the worry that Blaine had shared his body with another man as if he ever could. Blaine didn't really know how he knew how to pleasure Kurt the way he just had. He only knew that he had seen it in one of his dreams during the long nights they had spent together on the train. Long nights where Blaine was allowed to hold Kurt close to him, but out of fear, not allowed to do anything more, to do what he so longed to.

“Would you believe me if I told you I saw it in a dream?” Blaine asked. He leaned up on his elbow so he could look at Kurt and didn’t like the worry he saw there. “Kurt, sweetheart, you are the only person I have ever lain with, the only person I have ever wanted to be with. You are it for me, then, now and always. Please don’t ever doubt me, my love. You are it.” Blaine laid back down and pulled Kurt close against him again, needing to hold him until Kurt’s doubts disappeared. After Kurt drifted off to sleep, Blaine laid there watching him, hoping all his doubts had slipped away. Blaine knew he should get up and grab a cloth so he could clean them off, but was just too relaxed to move. He figured he would sleep for a while and then do it.

~0~

Blaine woke up to an empty bed. Stretching his arms over his head, he kept his eyes firmly shut against the day he wasn’t yet ready to face. So comfortable and warm, Blaine couldn’t keep the smile off of his face as he remembered the perfect night he had shared with Kurt. Blaine had fallen asleep so satisfied, his arms wrapped around Kurt’s waist and snuggled up behind him as close as he could get. Thinking about what they had shared the night before had Blaine growing hard again. Unfortunately, that also brought his attention to the fact he had never gotten up last night to clean himself. His now growing cock felt like it had been glued to his inner thigh, and as he grew harder, it felt like his cock was trying to pull the skin off his thigh.

Blaine reached across the bed, hoping he could convince Kurt that after they cleaned up they could spend the rest of the day in bed together. That thought had his already half-hard cock standing at full attention. Blaine opened his eyes when reaching across the bed, his hand found nothing but an empty bed and cold sheets. Sighing, Blaine stood up and walked to the restroom to take care of his business and clean himself. Once he was dressed, Blaine went looking for Kurt. He hadn’t liked waking up without him.

Blaine walked down the stairs and was unable to keep the smile off of his face. He knew where he would find Kurt, so he walked straight to the library. The first thing he saw was Kurt sitting on the window seat in front of the bay window, looking out at the garden below him. The sunlight filtering through the glass played across Kurt’s hair, giving him the look of a halo floating above his head. Blaine was struck anew by Kurt’s beauty, and had a warmth spreading through him knowing that Kurt was his.

“I can’t say I liked waking up to an empty bed, but how can I complain when I get to see such a beautiful view,” Blaine said walking over to Kurt, a soft smile on his face. When Kurt turned around and looked at him, the smile quickly faded at seeing the sadness on Kurt’s face.

“Sweetheart, has something happened? Has the dragon lady said something to hurt you? If so, we don’t have to stay here. We can leave and find another place,” Blaine said, walking up to Kurt and pulling him into his arms, only to have Kurt stand up, and walk a little away. “Kurt?”

“Last night, after you went to sleep, I started thinking about what you said,” Kurt whispered, looking at Blaine with a sad look on his face. “How you said that what you did, you had seen in a dream,” Kurt continued, turning his back on Blaine facing the fireplace.

“Did you not like it Kurt? If you didn’t, I won’t ever do it again. I just honestly thought you would. I am so sorry. I’m sorry if I crossed a line,” Blaine whispered and felt almost like crying. He had tried to please Kurt and apparently had done anything but.

“It’s not that I didn’t like what you did, Blaine. I would think what happened afterward would have proven just how much I _did_ enjoy it,” Kurt said with a blush spreading across his cheeks. “But you said you saw it in a dream. I have been in your dreams for months since we turned seventeen. We have done many things in our dreams together, but not _that_. It kind of made me wonder who else you have been dreaming of,” Kurt said, trying to keep his voice from breaking.

“So, you think I have cheated on you?” Blaine whispered so beyond hurt that Kurt would ever think that of him.

“It’s not cheating if it was only a dream,” Kurt whispered back, wiping the tears off of his cheeks that he just couldn’t stop from falling.

“That’s just it Kurt, to me it would be. I belong to you, heart, body, mind, and soul. If I had had that dream about someone else, to me, it would have been cheating. I have never thought of anyone else, about being with anyone else but you. I’m so hurt that you thought I would,” Blaine said quietly, turning around and walking out of the room. He needed to walk away, to leave that room, to be away from _him_. Blaine never thought he would feel this way about Kurt, and knew he needed some time alone. He went to the only place he knew that would calm him down.

An hour later, Kurt found him in the music room, playing some of the saddest music he had ever heard. Walking over to the piano, Kurt sat down beside Blaine and was glad that he didn’t pull away. “I’m sorry, Blaine. I never meant to make you think I thought you cheated on me. I just didn’t understand how you knew how to do that.”

“I honestly don’t know, Kurt. But I swear it was a dream I had about you when we were still on the train. It felt so different from all the dreams we had shared. This one almost felt like a memory of something I had done before. I had done that for you before, and I couldn’t wait to do it again. I can’t explain it,” Blaine said. “It’s like I have memories in my head that aren’t mine, things I know I have never done before, but I remember them so clearly. Each day it seems like a new memory is there.”

“Why didn’t you say anything before now? I have experienced similar things. When we walked into this house, I felt instantly at home and yet not at the same time. I feel like I belong here in Venice, but also long to be back in Saint Petersburg. I know that is crazy, I know me and dad didn’t get along anymore, but that is still home and that is how this place feels as well. I feel like I have my memories, and someone else’s in my head. Could this whole thing be true? In the book, it said we would soon remember everything, that we always do. Is this what it was talking about?” Kurt asked.

“I don’t know, but somehow I remember that gondola ride like it was yesterday. How crazy that driver acted and how I just wanted to get out. I remember looking at you and feeling so much love. I remember diving to the bottom of the canal to bring up your book. But Kurt, that wasn’t _me._ How can I still remember it?” Blaine asked, so confused.

“I don’t know…” Kurt started to answer before being interrupted.

“Sirs, I’m sorry to disturb you. I was instructed to let you know that breakfast is ready when you are. It has been set for you in the breakfast room. I’m sorry we weren’t ready for you this morning when you got up. We didn’t know what time you normally arose. It will never happen again,” a woman, dressed in a maids uniform said before curtsying to them and starting to walk out.

“Excuse me, madam. May we know your name?” Kurt asked with a smile, walking forward to meet her.

“Sir, my name is Alba,” she said before curtsying again.

“And may we ask what your job is here?” Kurt asked with a smile on his face. There was something about that sweet lady he liked.

“I work directly under Signora Maro. I help with the day to day running of the house. I have already sent up a maid to clean your room and to put fresh linens on your bed. Now that someone lives here again, it will be done daily as Mr. Blaine and Mr. Kurt liked. If you would like to follow me, I will show you to the breakfast room,” Alba said before turning around and walking out the door. They were taken to a smaller dining area than the one they had used for dinner the night before. Somehow they had missed this room during their tour.

Kurt and Blaine had just sat down for breakfast when Annalisa breezed through the doors. “Good morning, dear cousins. How are you doing?” She asked with a big smile on her face, grabbing a plate, filling it up, and then sitting down at the table in front of them. They had both been surprised when they walked into the room and saw the different platters sitting on the sideboard. They had assumed they would be settling for coffee and possibly toast after last night's meal, but the platters were filled with fluffy scrambled eggs, ham, toast, pastries, juice, and coffee.

“Cousins?” Kurt questioned.

“Well, I have to call you something when I introduce you to people. I didn’t think you would appreciate me calling you Paps and Dat the way I used to,” Annalisa said with a sad smile. She still missed her grandfather's, especially Dat.

“So, you believe all of this?” Blaine asked, a little surprised.

“You know, like I said yesterday, growing up it was like my own personal fairy tale. Paps, which is what I called you, Blaine, would always tell me stories of the past. All the places they had been, the things they had done. I saw more love between them than I did any other couple, even my parents. As I grew older, I admit to my doubts, but looking at you, watching how you went up to that statue without being told what it was proved to me this was real. You might not remember everything, Dat said you didn’t always at first, but you knew about that statue and that made me a believer. I wish I hadn’t had to lose them before realization hit me,” Annalisa said with a sad smile, shaking her head.

“Ok, enough of this. My Dat and Paps were always happy. They always hated it when I was sad and did everything they could to cheer me up. So, _cousins_ , how was your first night?”

“Actually, there was something we wanted to talk to you about,” Blaine said, looking at Kurt to make sure they were on the same page. “Do we have the authority to remove staff members should we decide to stay here long term?”

“Of course. This is your home as long as you want it to be. You own it. You are in charge of this house, especially after you take over the foundation. May I ask what’s wrong? I picked most of the staff myself. After my grandfather’s passed away, a lot of their staff opted to retire, a few are still here, but most have only been here for a few years,” Annalise asked in concern.

“We met the housekeeper last night, Signora Maro. I don’t know what it was about her, but she talked down to us, like we worked for her instead of the other way around. I don’t know how to explain it. When I asked her to change the linen in the room we chose, she looked at us like we were dirty, and said she didn’t know how she was to work around people like us. I might have taken it wrong, but I don’t think so. I don’t think I want to live under the same roof as her. She doesn’t have to agree with our lifestyle, a lot of people don’t, but she should keep the derogatory comments to herself,” Blaine said, getting upset all over again.

“I’m sorry she treated you like that. I picked her myself. I had heard some excellent things about her, and she has always seemed so professional to me. If you would like, we can go and talk to her and relieve her of her duties effective immediately, and I will start looking for her replacement,” Annalisa said, shaking her head. Signora Maro had been on staff for just under ten years. She had of course, come to work for them after her grandfather's passing. Annalisa always thought that the love her grandfathers shared was beautiful and loved them both dearly. She did, however, understand that not everyone had the same attitude she did, but anyone working in this house, for _this_ foundation, must.

“Is there anyone already working for us that can step into that role, and we can then replace that person. Promote from within?” Kurt asked. This was all still so new to him. He still was unsure of where he stood. He knew that he and Blaine kept being told they were the owners, that they would eventually run everything, but that was still hard for Kurt to wrap his head around. They showed up in Venice two days ago, and now they were being told they owned the villa, and within three months would be in charge of running the foundation.

“There’s Signora Alba” Annalisa offered. “She was actually here before Signora Maro. She was asked at the time if she would like to step up into that role. She was here before my grandfathers passed and was well-loved by them. At the time, she was dealing with a sick mother and decided to stay in her current position. I know she loved working for my grandfathers, and I think she might be a good fit. We can always ask her after we speak to Signora Maro.”

“I like that idea. We met her this morning. She seemed very nice. I know we don’t know much about her, but if she has been working here this long, she must be good. I would love to see her get the promotion,” Kurt said.

“I feel the same, let her move up, and then whoever was under Signora Alba can move up to her place. As Kurt said, we can hire from within,” Blaine said with a smile, and they followed Annalisa toward the kitchen. The housekeeper's office was just to the outside left of the kitchen. Annalisa motioned for Blaine to open the door, allowing him to enter first, followed by Kurt. They would be taking over, it was their place to let Signora Maro go.

“May I ask what you think you are doing just opening my office door without first knocking? As a guest of this villa, you have no business being in this part of the house. I guess your parents never taught you, or is it simply ‘ _your_ ’ kind of people, about knocking on closed doors. Well, let me be the one to teach you. It is very impolite to just barge in the way you have. You better hope as soon as I talk to Annalisa this morning, that she doesn’t throw the both of you out on your ears. I am in charge of this house, **_me_**. I say what happens here, who stays. Annalisa will back me on this, be prepared,” Signora Maro said, standing up and leaning over the desk, palms down to brace herself, sneering at Blaine and Kurt. She had failed to see Annalisa standing behind them until too late. “Oh, Signorina Annalisa, I didn’t see you standing there. May I be so bold as to ask how long you feel your guests will be staying?”

“Number one, when did we agree that you would address me so commonly? To you, I’m Signorina Beneventi. Number two, they will be here as long as they desire to stay. You know Signora Maro, when my cousins told me you were rude to them last night, I had trouble believing it. You had always seemed so professional,” Annalisa said, stopping to smile at Blaine and Kurt. “Now, standing here, I see what they meant. You should understand, Signora Maro, that Blaine and Kurt aren’t just guests in this home, they own it, and therefore they’re your boss. THEY are in charge of this house, and THEY decide how it is run.”

“Cousins?…. Owners?” Signora Maro stuttered. “I was not made aware of this.”

“It shouldn’t matter who they are. Your job here, as the housekeeper, is to run this house as the foundation sees fit, as _they_ see fit. You have no right to be rude to anyone, much less a guest in this home. I leave it to Blaine and Kurt to decide where we go from here,” she said, watching as all color drained from Signora Maro’s face.

“Signors, I apologize for being rude to you. I assumed you were just a guest here. I didn’t like you telling me what to do. I apologize wholeheartedly,” Signora Maro said, stumbling over her words.

“As my cousin said, it shouldn’t matter if we are the owners or a simple guest in this home. You have no right to be rude in any situation. Also, I didn’t tell you to do anything. I merely asked you to have clean linens put on the bed we would be using. I don’t care for your attitude, Signora Maro, and your employment here is no longer needed. Please pack your belongings and leave. Your final pay packet will be ready before you leave,” Blaine said, hoping he didn’t overstep his authority. Watching Annalisa and Kurt nod their heads, he assumed he had not.

“Also, Signora Maro, don’t forget the confidentiality contract you signed on agreeing to your employment within this home and foundation. Also, don’t expect a reference from this foundation or me,” Annalisa said.

The three stepped aside and allowed Signora Maro to pass. Once she was out of sight, Blaine looked at Annalisa and Kurt. He hadn’t liked doing that at all. Even though the woman was evil, he still wondered how she would survive without this job and with no references.

“Well, that was difficult,” Blaine said to Annalisa.

“That part of running the foundation is never easy, but the next part should be,” Annalisa said with a smile, walking out of the housekeeper's office and into the kitchen area itself. “Signora Alba, would you join my cousins and me in the office for a moment?”

Kurt and Blaine stood back and waited for Annalisa and Signora Alba to return to the office expecting Annalisa to handle the next part. When she just looked at Kurt and Blaine, motioning for them to go on, with a smile Kurt stepped forward, taking a deep breath. “Signora Alba, for reasons we cannot discuss at this time, Signora Maro will no longer be working for the foundation. We would like to offer you the position of housekeeper. It will, of course, mean a raise for you if you’re interested. We would also appreciate your input on who you feel should step up and assume your role,” Kurt said, before looking at Annalisa and getting a subtle nod.

Signora Alba just smiled, looking between the three of them, like she somehow knew what had gone on, who Kurt and Blaine actually were. “You know I worked here with your ‘ _uncles_ ’ for many years. They were two of the most honest and caring gentlemen I ever knew. I enjoyed working for them, for this house, this foundation. Over the last few years, since Signora Maro took over, I have almost walked away many times. I will be proud to work for you again,” she said with a twinkle in her eyes. No one in the room missed where she said ‘ _you_ ’ again.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Thank you once again to my amazing beta JayHawkWrites. Also, thank you for all the reviews, Kudo's, follows, and likes I have gotten on this story. It means a lot. Only two chapters to go. This fic will soon be wrapping up. I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy. TB.

After breakfast was finished, and Signora Maro had been escorted out of the house, Kurt and Blaine followed Annalisa into the office on the ground floor. They had looked in the door the night before, but hadn’t entered, somehow feeling like it should be off-limits. They knew Annalisa had said that this was their house and their foundation, but it still felt weird to the both of them.

“So, how does the foundation work?” Blaine asked as they sat down.

“Ok. I can only go on what my grandfathers told me. Everything is in the book they left behind for you, as far as I know. No one has ever been allowed to look inside, except the two of you. I have seen the outside cover, the beauty of it. It seemed so miraculous and interesting, but I was never allowed to look through its pages. My Dat said that it was their history, _your_ history,” Annalisa told them before she started into what she knew about the foundation as a whole.

“I’ve looked at that statue many times in the last seventeen years and had no idea it had a secret door. I didn’t know that that is where the book went. As I said, I was so fascinated by it. I wanted to look inside it so badly. I had been entrusted with the foundation, but never that book. To be honest, I have looked all over this house for it. I believed Paps and Dat’s stories, don’t get me wrong, but I still had my doubts that it could all be real. I thought if I could just look inside that book, all my questions would be answered, but it disappeared the day they died,” Annalisa explained.

“The day the two of you showed up...the day I walked outside and saw the two of you looking at the villa, I knew I had all the proof I needed. This was especially true when you went straight to the statue without instruction. My grandfathers told me they would be back, that I would see them again in eighteen years. They told me that they wouldn’t remember right away, that they would be young again, but that it would be them. Paps held me tight and told me not to cry, that they would love me forever. Dat kissed my cheek, gave me a wink, and said they would be back. He had Paps held hands, walked up the stairs, and went to sleep. The next morning they were gone,” Annalisa said, wiping a tear off of her cheek.

“What do you mean the next morning they were gone?” Kurt asked, thinking he knew the answer, but needed her to say it.

“They passed,” She said.

“The same night?” Blaine asked in shock.

“Yes, the same night. From the beginning of your time, you have both been born on the same day, and have both passed on the same day,” Annalisa said, looking at them both to see how they were handling the information, it sounded weird to her as well. “That is what my grandfathers told me anyway. They said they didn’t know what would become of them if one passed before the other, but they hoped never to find out.

Kurt and Blaine looked at each other and hoped for the same thing. Neither wanted to think of a life without the other. They had been destined to be together. They were halves of the same whole. They weren’t just connected by heart, but also by soul.

“Ok, the foundation,” Annalisa said, taking a deep breath before continuing. “The foundation began in 1170. It was created to help people in need, but also as a way for the next generation to have access to their funds. The original generation didn’t want to take a chance on their money disappearing, so the foundation was created. In each generation, all funds are transferred to you in your seventeenth year; you are in control. Why they opted only to transfer the foundation holdings in the eighteenth year, I don’t know, but according to Dat and Paps, you will soon remember why.”

“What about this house? Is it the base of the foundation?” Kurt asked her.

“For the generation that just ended, yes. At the end of each new generations time, a new statue is created and housed in a place of their choosing, which is then protected by the foundation. This is the home my grandfathers created. But this isn’t the only one that has been. The foundation is in control of multiple homes in different parts of the world. 

“What happens to the foundation if Kurt and I opt to go back home. Venice is nice, but if we ever get the chance to, we will be going back, maybe not to Saint Petersburg, but at least in Russia. That is home to us, that is where we have family. What happens to the foundation, then?” Blaine asked Annalisa.

“Then the foundation moves to Russia, or wherever you opt to take it. My Dat and Paps were both from Venice. They were born not too far from each other, but didn’t meet until they were seventeen. From what Paps said, they found their statue in France. They lived there for a few years and then when they could, they moved back home. The foundation moved with them. What the two of you don’t seem to understand is that _you are the foundation_. Where you go is where it is,” Annalisa said, looking at them both and hoping that with this information, they could finally understand what all she was telling them.

“What happens to you? If we opt to leave, what happens to you, to this house, that statue?” Kurt asked Annalisa.

“This house is now, and always will be, in the protection of the foundation. All properties are kept and maintained. The statues stay protected. As for me, I am the guardian of this house, this generation. If and when you decide you need to leave, I will do as I have always done and protect it. Funds have been set aside for the maintenance of every home. Each guardian uses that fund for upkeep. When their time comes to an end, they choose a new guardian to take their place. If a new guardian can’t be found within the bloodlines of that generation, then someone from the next generation’s line takes it over. My grandfathers said this is the way it has always been, the way they wanted it to be,” Annalisa answered.

“So, we can go home,” Kurt said, excited. A big smile spreading across his face as he looked at Blaine.

“When the time is right. When we can go there and be safe, then yes, we will be able to go home,” Blaine answered just as happy as Kurt.

Annalisa looked at them both, she had secretly wondered how long they would stay. Yes, her Dat and Paps had loved this house, but they had been from Venice. Kurt and Blaine had memories, a connection, family in another place. “All we ask is that you stay here until February the 18th when you turn 18. At that time the foundation can legally be passed to you, and I will step down to just the guardian of this house.”

“How did you know that was our birthday?” Kurt asked in shock. They had never told her that, never said they would be 18 in only two months.

“My grandfathers were born on February the 18th, as they were in the generation before that, and the one before that. You are each born on February the 18th, and you both die on the same day. You never know what year, just the month and date,” Annalisa answered.

“So that’s what that meant. There’s a page at the beginning of the book that said, ‘ _You will separate in death, and then find each other again from now until the end of time, together always_ ,’” Blaine whispered, looking at both of them.

“Always,” Kurt said, reaching out and taking Blaine’s hand.

“Ok, enough of the maudlin,” Annalisa laughed. “I have you for just over two months. Two months to show you everything, go over the foundation and get you ready to take over. What are your plans for your time here?”

Blaine looked at Kurt for a moment before looking at her. “We don’t have much in the way of plans. Yes, we would like to go home, but we don’t know yet if that will be a possibility with things the way they are there.”

“Not that I want you to leave, please don’t think that,” Annalisa said. “But you could always go back to Russia. You don’t have to go back to your parent's homes if you don’t want to. You can always do like my grandfathers did. They had this house built away from their families. That way, they could be there if needed, but live their own lives. Yes, it hurt them that they had to act like brothers outside of these walls, but they lived a happy life together. You can always do the same, you will have the financial means to do so, and the foundation to help,” she explained.

“It’s true…” Kurt and Blaine heard someone say behind them. They turned towards the door and found Gianna and an older gentleman standing beside her, looking at Blaine and Kurt, surprise written on his face.

“I never really believed it. How can this be real?” the gentleman whispered, his mouth hanging slightly open, looking between Kurt and Blaine, tears running down his face. “It's really you.”

Before Kurt and Blaine had time to say anything, they were both pulled into the man's arms and held in a tight hug, feeling as his body began to shake with emotion. “Gia, they are back. They’re really back.”

“Kurt and Blaine, you have met my mother,” Annalisa said softly, motioning to her mother. “I would now like to introduce you to my uncle, Giovanni Andresano. Uncle Gio, this is Kurt and Blaine.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Blaine said when Giovanni finally released them.

“You really don’t know us. You don’t remember any of it, do you?” Giovanni said in a soft voice looking at Gianna, hurt written on his face.

“I’m sorry, but no. If the book is to be believed, we will eventually remember, but for now, no we don’t. I am sorry,” Kurt answered, feeling bad for both Giovanni and Gianna. Trying to imagine how they must feel, walking into a room and seeing the fathers they had lost to death seventeen years ago, standing in front of them with no memory of the lives they lived together. How heartbreaking that must be for them.

“I understand,” Giovanni said with a sad smile on his face. “My fathers warned me this would happen. They even suggested that we not meet you, but when Gianna told me what she saw yesterday, I had to come. I had to see for myself. I guess I just hoped…”

“Uncle Gio, I’m glad you are here. I was just about to go over the foundation records and the financial side of everything,” Annalisa said, trying to change the subject and make things easier for her mom and uncle. “My grandfathers might have trusted me with the running of their foundation and all things financial, but outside these walls, people don’t have the same beliefs that Paps and Dat had. Outside these walls, a woman's place is in the home, not running a business. Uncle Giovanni is over the bank owned by the foundation. As a woman, I would never have been allowed to do such a thing.”

Giovanni laughed softly, looking at Kurt and Blaine. “My fathers were very forward-thinking individuals. They believed that men and women were created equal. That my sister and I could both accomplish anything we wanted to. I was never treated differently from Gianna, and she was never treated differently from me. We both had the best education available to us. When our friends were being sent to boarding schools, our fathers brought in the best tutors. They wanted us with them. They never wanted to send us away. I didn’t spend my first night away from home until the day I married, and I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. We might not have had the most traditional family, but in this house, this home, we always knew we were loved.” Giovanni took a moment to reel his emotions back in. He was very passionate about his feelings regarding his family and the way he and his sister were raised, even if there weren’t a lot of others who did.

“I wish the outside world could have felt the same way. Unfortunately, that is not the case. So even though Annalisa is perfectly capable of taking care of all things having to do with the foundation and the bank, legally as a woman, she can’t. Anyway, I brought the foundation finances with me, and as soon as you can sign some forms, you will be added to the financial accounts. All funds will be in your control again,” Giovanni said, sitting down next to Blaine and Kurt, pulling a stack of forms out of his bag, and passing them across to them.

“You’re kidding, right? You can't seriously be saying this is ours,” Kurt said, looking first Giovanni and then Annalisa. Blaine and Kurt had been passed the bank account information that showed the funds in the accounts. There was more money than they could ever spend in a lifetime, in three lifetimes even.

“No, this is correct. The money is yours. You earned it throughout your past lives. Each new generation has doubled or tripled the funds in this account since the day the foundation was created. It is now and has always been yours. I can only imagine how confusing this must all be for you. I have grown up knowing your stories, and I sometimes still can’t believe it,” Annalisa answered.

“We were never told everything about our father's past lives, we just grew up hearing stories of their love,” Giovanni said. “They told us how even though they would be separated for a short while, they always found their way back to each other. They had this amazing love story. I don’t know how the rest earned money in the foundation’s accounts, but our father, Blaine, earned his through his music.”

“Daddy was a concert pianist, the best around and very sought after. He had a natural gift for music. If he wanted to learn how to play a particular instrument, the knowledge came easily to him,” Gianna finally spoke, she had been sitting quietly while her daughter and brother explained the workings of the foundation. She had sat staring at the two young men in front of her, still not believing that everything she had grown up hearing was really true. It wasn’t that they had doubted their fathers per se, just that it seemed like some incredible bedtime story.

“Papa, or Kurt,” Gianna said with a soft smile, “well, he loved to read. He could sit in his library for hours immersed in a book. He taught us to love the written word as well. He said books meant a lot to him, that the words between the covers of a book could transport you to different places and different times, like magic.”

“Papa had a harsher upbringing than Daddy did. His parents were strict, and at times cruel. They never allowed him to read. Papa learned in secret how to read, though, and from that point on it became his passion to read every story, every book he could get his hands on. When he could no longer find books that interested him, he began writing his own. When he was 25 he became a well known published author. He worked with the printing house, making sure every book had a different style of cover. He said that to him, they were a work of art, and wanted the outside to portray that. He became wealthy in his own right,” Gianna said with a proud smile on her face. She had loved her fathers equally, but if truth be told, her Papa had been her favorite person in the world.

“Kurt Andresano, your father was Kurt Andresano? I have read every book he has ever written. They are amazing. He had a way of drawing you in like no other author I have ever read. He was amazing,” Kurt said in awe. Not believing he was sitting in the house of his favorite author.

“Kurt, sweetheart, if everything we are hearing is correct, if what that book says is true, _you_ wrote those books,” Blaine said with a laugh looking at the awe on Kurt’s face talking about his favorite author.

“Ooh… yeah,” Kurt said with a self-deprecating laugh, smiling at Blaine. He had forgotten that.

“So, Giovanni, you were given Kurt’s last name, what was Blaine’s?” Blaine asked, realizing after he said it how funny what he said sounded.

“Daddy’s last name was Andresano. Papa was born Kurt Huber. When they had their joining ceremony when they were eighteen, Papa became Kurt Andresano. People believed them to be brothers, and therefore, they felt they should share the same last name. Since Papa no longer had any kind of connection with his parents or family, he took on Daddy’s name. That also helped Papa hide. As Gianna said, Papa’s family was cruel and also had a habit of using people. If they had somehow found out Papa had money, he would never find peace again,” Giovanni explained.

“I never thought about that. We are supposed to be brothers, and yet we have different surnames,” Kurt said and looked at Blaine

“We can do that,” Blaine said with a soft smile, loving the idea of sharing the same last name. “So, who shall we become Blaine and Kurt Hamburg or Blaine and Kurt Andreyev? I leave the decision up to you, sweetheart. I will be happy with either name you choose.”

Kurt looked at Blaine for a moment, the decision for him was an easy one. He had lost all respect for his father the day he had brought that woman into his mother's home and then kicked him out because of her. “I believe we should be Blaine and Kurt Andreyev,” Kurt said softly, reaching out to take Blaine’s hand in his.

“That sounds perfect,” Blaine said with a smile crossing his face. He had never been so proud in his life. Kurt, his Kurt, wanted to share his last name. Blaine couldn’t have been happier.

When the paperwork had been signed, turning over full financial control of the foundation, and once the other three had excused themselves, Kurt and Blaine went exploring Venice. They had been given directions and the addresses for all of the foundation's holdings and stopped at each one, getting a feel for the work that was being done. They were both in awe, but saw right away what everyone talked about, the foundation did a lot of good work.

“If we ever get to go back home, I would love to be able to create something like this again, keep up the work that has been started by the foundation,” Kurt said softly.

“I would like that, too,” Blaine said just as softly, falling more in love every second they were able to be together. He didn’t know how he had survived without Kurt in his life but knew without a doubt, he would never be able to do so again.

On the way back to the villa, they stopped by the palace. Blaine handed his letter of introduction to one of the guards, and after a five-minute wait, they were then ushered into the private office of Princess Annunziata.

“I received a letter from my cousin Princess Daria, about you just yesterday. She had nothing but good things to say about you. I, however, would like to make my own judgment of your talent. If you will follow me to the music room, I will hear you play and then make my decision. You, sir, may wait here until we return,” she said to Kurt. Blaine knew right away he didn’t like her. She was nothing like Princess Daria in temperament or attitude, but he knew he could work with her anyway. He had dealt with attitudes like hers before.

After playing three songs for her, she asked him to perform for her wedding. Blaine was proud, and even more so when he saw the bag of coins he was handed. He knew in that instant that he would be able to support himself and Kurt until Kurt could decide what he wanted to do. Blaine was also surprised that she paid him upfront even more so at the amount she had given him. He had thought what Princess Daria had paid him was a lot, but judging by the weight of the bag he had been handed, it was nowhere near the amount he had just been handed.

Over the next few months, Blaine and Kurt worked with Giovanni and Annalisa, learning everything there was to know about the foundation, and in the process learning more about themselves.


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Thank you once again to my amazing beta JayHawkWrites. Also thank you for all the reviews, Kudo's, follows and likes I have gotten on this story. It means a lot. I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy. TB.

Blaine was up early, a nervous wreck. He was supposed to be performing for Princess Annunziata’s wedding in three days and he didn’t know if he would be ready. He had practiced every day. Sometimes at home, and other times when asked to appear at the palace. Blaine had begun to hate the days he was requested to go there because that meant she had changed her mind yet again...

Every time he was called, he knew that there had either been a song added or one removed from her requested list. Yesterday, she had almost made him walk out. Princess Annunziata decided that the main song she had requested, a song he hadn’t even wanted to play to begin with, needed to be switched for another. That would have been fine, it was her wedding after all and she had every right to change her mind. He wouldn’t have minded it so much if she hadn’t decided three days before he was supposed to play the stupid song that it just ‘ _wouldn’t work.’_ Blaine had worked on the music for that song for over a month, getting it precisely the way she wanted it, adding what she wanted him to add and removing parts she felt were just ‘ _too provincial for her taste_.’ She had even said _that_ while looking down her nose at him.

If Princess Daria hadn’t told him they were related, he never would have believed it. They were just so very different. Now, instead of being in the breakfast room sitting across from Kurt and talking about what they would do until it was time for him to go to the palace, Blaine was going to be stuck in the music room alone. If it weren’t for the fact that she had already paid him and that he would feel like he was letting Princess Daria down by doing so, he would refuse to even do the wedding for her. That is how crazy she was making him.

Blaine had had grand plans for today. He was going to go to the palace, work with the Princess for a while, and then escape earlier than usual so that he could find something for Kurt for their birthday tomorrow. He knew exactly what he wanted, but hadn’t been able to find what he was looking for yet. Blaine had stopped at many shops over the last month looking at what they had to offer and just hadn’t found that ‘perfect’ one. He had all but lost hope until he had spoken to Signora Alba yesterday and was told about one more shop he could check out. Now, with the newest change in the music, Blaine knew he wouldn’t be leaving the palace early enough to make it to the shop before it closed. He would probably be stuck there even later than usual. Blaine was now out of time. 

The only thing Blaine had managed to get Kurt was a book he had heard him talking about with one of the maids who had been cleaning the library one morning. Blaine had walked in looking for Kurt, wanting to talk to him about something and had seen just how animated he got talking about a book he had borrowed from a neighbor in Saint Petersburg. Kurt had talked about the story, how it had drawn him in and made him love reading even more. He then went on to say that he had looked in many shops trying to find a copy for himself but had been unable to find one. Kurt said it had broken his heart the day he had to return it to its owner. Blaine was so excited when he had finally found a copy of that book. Now he was happy he had found the book. At least he had _something_ to give his love, even if it wasn’t the gift he had hoped to give him.

With a sigh, Blaine sat down at the piano. He started shuffling through the sheet music that had been left behind by Blaine Andresano, hoping against hope that there would be something useful, maybe even something he already knew that Princess Annunziata would accept, and his sanity could be restored. When Blaine had left to follow Kurt to Novosibirsk, and then on to Italy, he hadn’t really thought to pack his own music. Getting to Kurt had been his main priority and now he was kicking himself for not thinking to bring it.

Blaine shuffled through the sheets, separating what he thought might work from the ones he knew she wouldn’t like. He stopped when he got to a folded piece of paper in the very middle of the stack. Blaine stared at it, not understanding why he hadn’t seen it before. He had looked through that stack of papers multiple times and was just now finding it. What had him staring in disbelief though was that on the front of the letter was his name, written in his own handwriting. Before he even opened the note, he suddenly knew who had left it behind for him to find. With a shaking hand, he slowly opened the letter and started to read.

_Dear Blaine,_

_Don’t ask me how I know you will be the one to find this missive, we just always seem to be the ones that do. If you are finding this letter, that means it’s time and that you are ready. It always seems to work out that way. When we are ready to commit to our love, these letters are always found, they seem to find their way to us. I don’t really understand it all myself, and I have lived with this knowledge most of my life._

_My journey started like yours, with a dream. Secrets shared with our eyes shut. Isn’t our Kurt amazing? I could spend a million years with him and it would never be quite enough time. Since I know you don’t remember everything yet, but soon you will, I will try to explain a few things to you. I know you have dreamed of a mage, a man in long blue robes. That is Anton Vandimer, and he is the one who gave us this beautiful life. He promised us lifetime after lifetime with each other. A promise made and kept over and over since it was made. We owe so much to that wonderful man, for giving us such a precious, precious gift. Because of him, we have shared many lifetimes together, and the hope of many many more._

_We have lived many lives, in many places, and through it all, we have loved. I can’t imagine a day without our Kurt in it, and I am sure you feel the same. Go to the foundation office and look in the desk that was mine (I’m sure by now my beautiful Annalisa would have told you which desk I used. Isn’t she an amazing child. God, how I love her). Anyway, in the top left-hand drawer of my desk, you will find a key hidden in a little wooden box. Take that key to the room I know you and our Kurt would have chosen as your own, it’s the one we had created to be ours. Behind the picture of apples (I don’t know how someone as beautiful and talented as our Kurt is, could have picked out such a hideous picture to hang in our bedroom), sorry, I digress. Behind that picture, you will see where I cut out a place in the wall, and I have hidden another box for you to find._

_I put this letter here for you in case you wanted to do as I did and surprise Kurt. I have always loved the way he looks when he is surprised. Inside that box, you will find two rings. These are the rings we have used in every commitment ceremony we have ever had. We will probably never be able to wed legally, but in our hearts we are, and to us, that is all that really matters. On our last night in this lifetime together, we slipped the rings off and I put them there for you to find. Wear them with love. Wear them with pride as we always have. One day we hope to be able to get married legally, but until that day comes, we commit ourselves to each other in secret._

_I know how confused you must still be, I myself was like that, but you will soon remember all that has come before you. Just know what a glorious time you shall have. Enjoy the rest of your journey together as we have ours. It has been amazing._

_Yours,_

_Blaine_

Blaine reread the letter for the third time before deciding that music, for now, could wait. Making his way to the office and to the desk he now uses as his own, Blaine opened up the top left drawer and found the wooden box talked about in the letter. Blaine shook his head as he stared at the box because he knew he had been in that drawer before. He knew he had pulled papers out of there before, and that box hadn’t been there. Maybe he really was losing his mind.

Looking around to make sure Kurt wasn’t around, Blaine raised the lid and found the smallest key he had ever seen. With a smile, Blaine left the office, walked up the stairs and down the hall to their room. Standing in front of the picture of apples, he could only shake his head, it really was a hideous picture. Knowing Kurt as he did, he couldn’t believe that _his_ Kurt had picked something like that out in a previous lifetime.

Once again making sure no one was around, Blaine gently pulled the picture off the wall and leaned it against a table sitting nearby. Reaching into the hole that had been created for this purpose, Blaine removed the box, slowly unlocking and opening the lid. He lost his breath. Nestled safely inside the box was exactly what he had been looking for, what he had wanted to surprise Kurt with tomorrow. Two perfectly designed rings, one in silver and one in gold, both rings exactly alike except for the color. Blaine suddenly knew why he hadn’t found what he was looking for no matter how many shops he had visited. The right ring hadn’t been found because he had always been meant to find these. Other rings would have worked, but nothing would have been as perfect, as special as what he held in his hands now.

Blaine pulled the silver ring out of the box, somehow knowing it had been meant for him to wear. He slowly slipped it on his finger and found it a perfect fit, like it had been designed just for him, and somehow he knew that it had been. With a soft smile, he slipped the ring back off his finger to put it back in the box for safekeeping until he could surprise Kurt with them tomorrow. As he set the ring back down he saw something on the inside of the band. Inscribed in what looks like Kurt’s perfect handwriting was “Then, Now, Always, Forever.” Blaine pulled Kurt’s ring out next once again and looked on the inside, finding the same inscription only this time in his handwriting. Only one word came to Blaine’s mind, ‘ _Perfect_.’

With a smile on his face, Blaine quickly put the picture back on the wall before walking back to the music room, not wanting Kurt to suspect anything. That smile stayed on his face the rest of the day, even after visiting the palace to work with the Princess. By the wonder of wonders, she had decided the original song was perfect after all and requested that he leave everything as is, and she would see him the day of the wedding. He had just been gifted with three days to do nothing except spend time with Kurt.

~O~

Blaine woke up to an empty bed. He had had plans of waking Kurt up in a ‘special way.’ With a sigh, he threw the covers off himself and sat up and swung his legs over the edge of the mattress, sitting there for a minute. Just as Blaine stood up, he saw the bedroom door swing open and Kurt walk in, closing and locking the door behind him. Blaine could barely catch his breath as Kurt’s eyes connected with his, and watched as Kurt’s lips curled up in the most beautiful smile Blaine had ever seen. Kurt walked towards him, looking more beautiful than ever in a blue shirt Blaine had never seen him wear before. The color matched Kurt’s eyes and fitted his lithe form to perfection, showing off every one of Kurt’s gorgeous curves. Blaine could do nothing but stare.

“Blaine, you weren’t supposed to be up yet. I wanted to surprise you with breakfast in bed for your birthday. Now you’ve spoiled it,” Kurt said with a cute little pout as he walked towards Blaine carrying a tray with plates covered with domed lids, a teapot, and a small pitcher of orange juice.

Blaine’s mouth watered both from the smell of the food and the way Kurt’s hips swayed as he walked towards him. When he got close enough, Blaine slipped the tray out of Kurt’s hands and set it down on a small table close to the bed. Once he turned around, Blaine pulled Kurt into his arms and placed the sweetest of kisses on Kurt’s lips. “Well, sweetheart, I had ideas of how I wanted to wake you up for your birthday, and you spoiled that,” Blaine said, nibbling on Kurt’s bottom lip, loving as he heard Kurt moan his name.

“I bet if we try hard enough, we can manage to salvage both of those plans,” Blaine whispered in Kurt’s ear. He raised his hands to frame Kurt’s face, pulling his head closer, desperate to taste him again. Blaine almost lost it when Kurt sucked his tongue deeper into his mouth, deepening the kiss. That was new. Kurt had always kissed Blaine with as much passion as Blaine did him, but this morning it was different, this time it felt different, and Blaine couldn’t get enough. Lowering his hand to Kurt’s ass, he squeezed it gently, pulling Kurt’s hips closer to his and instantly felt how hard Kurt already was.

Never taking his lips off of Kurt’s, Blaine started backing Kurt up until the back of his legs hit the mattress. Blaine gently pushed him down on the bed, helped him scoot farther back, and then straddled his hips. Never taking his eyes off of Kurt, he slowly started rocking his hips so that their hard erections connected. Leaning down, bracing himself on his forearms, Blaine once again attacked Kurt’s lips, never stopping the thrusting of his hips.

“With everything that has been going on with the Princess, we haven’t had much time together this week. I’ve missed having you in my arms,” Blaine whispered, kissing down Kurt’s neck to the spot he knew drove Kurt crazy. When Kurt bucked his hips up, Blaine kissed him hungrily. “Oh, how you make me need you so badly,” Blaine moaned out.

“I need you, too, Blaine. I need you so bad,” Kurt said, looking up at Blaine, his eyes were completely blown. Blaine started thrusting his hips faster, pressing down harder, until Kurt moaned as he found his release. Blaine continued to rock against him until he came shortly after, feeling as tingles ran down his spine. Every time with Kurt was better than the time before. 

“I love you, my sweet boy. I love you so much,” Blaine whispered, rolling off of Kurt onto his side, and pulling Kurt tightly into his arms.

“I love you, Blaine. And I love your idea of birthday surprises better than mine,” Kurt said with a sweet smile and a blush spreading across his face.

“Trust me, we’ll enjoy your surprise next,” Blaine said, cuddling as close to Kurt as he could. Oh, how Blaine loved the feeling of having Kurt beside him and in his arms. How he had made it so long without him, Blaine didn’t know but did know he would never be able to survive without him again. He wouldn’t even want to try.

They spent the next thirty minutes talking, kissing, and just holding each other, simply being them until Blaine heard Kurt’s stomach growl. “I think it is time for us to check out the surprise you have for me now, sweetheart.”

Laughing, they both crawled out of bed, cleaned up, and then sat back down on the bed with the tray Kurt had brought in between them. Blaine almost cried when he raised the lid covering the food. He saw Zapekanka, Kasha, Butterbrots, scrambled eggs, thick Kielbasa sausages, and strong Russian tea. That was the breakfast his mother had made for him on his birthday every year. It had always been his favorite meal.

“How?” Blaine asked, looking first at the food in front of him, and then at Kurt.

“Last month, I wrote the Princess to let her know I wanted to do something special for you for your birthday. She went to your Mama and found out what you always ate on your birthday and she sent me her recipes. I went to Signora Alba, who pointed me to one of the downstairs maids who just happened to be Russian. She told me where to find everything I would need for the meal. With the help of the cook, I was able to recreate your favorite meal. It will probably not be close to your moms, but hopefully, you will like it,” Kurt said.

“I’m sure it will be perfect,” Blaine said, picking up his fork and placing the first bite of Zapekanka in his mouth. He felt like he was in heaven. He tasted the farmer’s cheese, small pieces of chopped candied orange, dried berries, and the part that had always made his Mama’s Zapekanka better than anyone else’s, small chunks of chocolate. Blaine couldn’t stop eating until he cleaned his plate, something he hadn’t done since the last time he ate his mom’s cooking.

“That was perfect, Kurt. Thank you so much for going through so much trouble for me. I have really been missing my mom lately, and that made it so much easier,” Blaine said, leaning in and placing a kiss on Kurt’s mouth.

“I’m sorry, Blaine. I’m sorry you had to leave your family to be with me,” Kurt said, looking down and no longer at Blaine.

“I am right where I’m supposed to be, Kurt. With you is the only place I will ever want to be. Be it in Venice, Russia, or Timbuktu. Beside you is the only place I was ever meant to be. Please don’t ever doubt that again, my love,” Blaine said, pulling Kurt into his arms, hating that he had made Kurt sad on their birthday.

“Are you sure?” Kurt questioned with a small smile on his face.

“One hundred percent sure,” Blaine said before standing up. “Give me a minute I have something I want to show you.”

With a smile, Blaine ran down the stairs to the music room. He grabbed the letter he had found yesterday and the rings. Blaine had left them there because he hadn’t wanted Kurt to find them. He had wanted this to be a surprise. He ran back upstairs to their room, once again shutting the door behind him, slowly walking toward Kurt, nervous all of a sudden.

“Kurt, yesterday I was trying to come up with music to play at the wedding after Princess Annunziata changed her mind about what she wanted. I was looking through the sheet music that had been left on the piano, and I found this,” Blaine said, holding the letter out to Kurt.

Kurt read the note and then slowly looked up at Blaine. “Did you find them?” Kurt questioned excitement written all over his face.

“I did indeed. I had a surprise I wanted for you as well. I knew we couldn’t marry legally, but I wanted a way to show you just how committed I am to you, to us, to our relationship. If we could marry, I would have already asked you to make me the happiest man on earth. I started thinking that we could commit to each other in private, a marriage of sorts between you, me, and God. I knew it wasn’t anything we would be able to share with anyone else, but we would know in our hearts that we were married, that I was yours, and you were mine, for now until forever. I have spent the last month trying to find you the perfect ring to propose to you with, and no matter what store I went into, nothing fit, nothing was perfect, and I knew that for this it had to be perfect, it _had_ to be. Yesterday, when I found that note and subsequently the rings I knew why nothing came close to what I wanted, it was because those rings were always here, ready to be found,” Blaine said with a smile passing the box he had found over to Kurt.

Kurt opened the lid and gasped. He had never seen anything more beautiful. The rings had the same intricate pattern on them, the only difference between the two was the materials they had been made of. “Blaine, they’re perfect,” Kurt whispered, not able to take his eyes off of them.

“Kurt, as I said, if we were allowed to, I would love nothing more than to take you to a chapel and proclaim in front of God and everyone that I choose you to be my husband. I would so proudly marry you. I know we haven’t known each other long, but my life begins and ends with you. Where you are, where you go, is the only place I was ever meant to be, will ever want to be. You are my love, my life, my everything. So, Kurt Hamburg, will you do me the honor of marrying me?” Blaine questioned.

“Blaine, I would be honored to. The day I had my first dream of you was the day my life began. There is no one I would rather spend my life with, share my love and body with. You are my beginning and my end. My today, my tomorrow, my forever after. Like you, if we could, I would be proud to stand at the altar and confess my love for you. You chase the shadows away from my soul with just a smile. you give me a reason to wake up every morning. You are someone I want to spend the rest of my lives going to bed with. Yes, Blaine Andreyev, I will happily marry you,” Kurt said with a tear running down his cheek. Together they reached into the box and pulled out the other’s ring. Blaine slipped Kurt’s ring on his finger, and with a smile, he bent over his hand and kissed the ring. With a smile, Kurt slipped Blaine’s ring on his finger and kissed it.

“Married,” they both said together with a smile.

“I still can’t believe you don’t like that beautiful painting,” Kurt said and then looked at Blaine and laughed.

oOoOo

After their wedding of sorts, they decided to go exploring. They spent the whole day going from shop to shop, every so often they would catch each other holding up their hands and staring at their rings. Life was good, and they couldn’t see it ever getting any better. Oh, how very wrong they were…

As they arrived back at the villa, as usual, the door was opened before they had a chance to knock. That had taken time to get used to, but since Signora Maro had left, the house ran smoothly the way it should. Kurt and Blaine had also spoken to the cook and had moved most of the tomato-based dishes off the menu, so now even mealtimes were more enjoyable. Kurt and Blaine started walking upstairs to change for dinner when they heard a discreet cough behind them.

“Sirs, by your leave, you have visitors in the grand salon. We have given them drinks, but they requested an audience on your return,” the butler, Lorenzo, said before bowing at the waist and walking away.

Kurt and Blaine looked at each other for a minute, having no idea who could be calling on them. The only people they knew were Annalisa, Gianna, and Giovanni, and they would have been shown into one of the more comfortable rooms, not the grand salon. Holding hands Kurt and Blaine walk to the door before opening it and walking in.

“I see you still haven’t figured out how to tell time, moy mal’chik,” Polina said, standing up with a beautiful smile spreading across her face, looking at her precious child.

Blaine stood there for a moment, looking between his parents, before he ran first to his mom and then his father, hugging them both, not realizing till that moment just how much he had missed them both. “Mama, Otets, what are you doing here?” Blaine asked in shock.

“We came to see our son,” Mikhail said, looking first at Blaine and then at Kurt, his hands behind his back, and his face giving nothing away. “You can, of course, understand our confusion when we were asked, to which son we were referring. Since, to the best of our knowledge, we only had the one, this seemed a strange question to be asked.”

“Otets, Mama, I promise I can explain,” Blaine started to respond only to have his father raise his hand to quiet him.

“Sit down, please. Both of you,” Mikhail said once again looking at them both.

Kurt and Blaine sat down close together on one of the lounges, waiting for Mikhail to finish. Blaine could only imagine what his father was going to say, as he slowly started pacing back and forth the length of the room. Mikhail only ever did that when he was disappointed by his son.

“Would you like to explain to me what you are doing here?” Mikhail asks, looking at Blaine.

“I was hired by Princess Annunziata to perform at her wedding in two days' time,” Blaine answered quietly.

“That is not what I meant, Blaine, and you know it. Would you like to explain _him_? Why every single person in this house thinks you are brothers and how the hell you are even allowed to stay in a house such as this?’ Mikhail asked his voice and expression demanding answers.

The tone he was using while talking about Kurt had Blaine standing up, facing his father. “Sir, I have always respected you. I have always tried to follow your rules, your dictates over me, but Sir, I will not stand here and allow you to talk about Kurt like that. I am an adult and Kurt is the man I love. I will not allow him to be disrespected in our home,” Blaine responded, staring his father in the eye.

“Blaine, stop. Don’t fight with your father over me. He has a right to ask his questions,” Kurt said, walking up to Blaine, placing a hand on his arm to calm him down. Blaine turned around to face his father again and was surprised by the smile on his face.

“That is all I needed to see son,” Mikhail said.

“I don’t understand, sir,” Blaine said softly.

“I needed to know if you were sure about this relationship if you had thought it all out. Especially the consequences you may face together. My only wish is that you would have told me yourself. Instead, I had to hear this from your mother. Did you think I wouldn’t love you anymore? That I wouldn’t support you or help you figure all this out? You are my son, and I will always support and be there for you. I know I have pushed you in the past because I always wanted the best for you. If I had been told sooner, I would have realized none of the ‘ _suggestions_ ’ I made for you would have worked,” Mikhail said with a fond laugh.

“You're serious right now?” Blaine said in shock, wrapping his arm around Kurt’s waist.

“Yes, son. You also need to know you have a very good friend in Princess Daria, and she is one of your staunchest supporters and said something along the line that she will ‘always win,’” he said, winking at Blaine. “Now then, would you like to explain to me what you mean by your home?” Mikhail said, motioning around the room.

“Hey, cousins. Are you ready to sign some papers?” Annalisa asked, walking into the room, only then realizing Kurt and Blaine weren’t alone. “Oh…”

“Ok, now this is going a little too far. First, we have a son we don’t know about, and now we have a niece. Would someone like to explain what is really going on?” Mikhail asked, this time serious. He had understood why Kurt and Blaine had introduced themselves as brothers, so they would be able to be together without too many funny looks, but there was no reason for this woman to introduce herself as their cousin.

“I’m so sorry. I thought you would be alone,” Annalisa said, looking between all of the occupants in the room.

“Is there anything in the rules or whatever that we can’t tell someone about us?” Blaine asked, directing his question to Annalisa.

“No, there are no rules or anything saying you can’t tell your story. If there were, mom, Uncle Giovanni, nor myself wouldn’t have known,” Annalisa said. “I am so sorry. I should have made sure the room was clear before opening my big mouth.”

Blaine looked at Kurt for a minute, thinking fast. He knows he can’t tell the real story to his parents. No matter how much they love him, they would never believe this. But Blaine wanted to get as close to their original story as he could.

“When Kurt and I first got to Venice, we ran into this elderly man. He was down on his luck it would seem and asked for some money. Before you say anything, Otets, I know it is stupid to give money away when we didn’t have that much to begin with. Well anyway, Kurt and I were able to spare him a few coins. It turned out that he was a very wealthy man and had been trying to find an honest person, someone who was willing to help a stranger, with nothing to gain for doing so. It wasn’t until after we met him that we found out he was Anton Vandermir,” Blaine said as he continued to tell the altered story of how he and Kurt obtained the house.

“He was very sick and had no family of his own. He wanted to have someone care for him at the end of his life. We offered to stay here, and help him out. In the long run it would help us as well. We would have somewhere to stay until we could figure everything out, and he would have someone to look after him. It wasn’t until he died last month that we found out he was not only wealthy but was head of the Vandermir Foundation. When he passed, he left us this house, all his money, and the foundation,” Blaine said, his heart beating rapidly, hoping his father believed the story. Yes, it was a lie, but not one at the same time.

“So, this is on the level?” Mikhail asked, looking at Blaine and then Annalisa.

“Yes, sir, it is. My name is Annalisa and I have been in charge of running the foundation for Mr. Vandermir. We had to wait until today, until they were eighteen to have Blaine and Kurt sign the paperwork to transfer everything into their safekeeping. I called them cousin as a joke, sir,” Annalisa said, looking at Blaine getting a small nod.

“May I see these papers before my sons sign them?” Mikhail asked, reaching out his hand as they were passed to him. No one questioned him when he said his ‘sons’ plural. He looked through every page, his eyes getting big. “So, does this mean they have to stay in Italy?”

“No, sir. Wherever they choose to move to, the foundation will go with them. They will just need to set up a new home to start it in. It can be here, back in Russia, or wherever makes them happy,” Annalisa said with a sad smile. “I will always be here to look over this home for them. If they ever want to come back for a visit, they will already have a place to stay.”

“I don’t see anything wrong with these boys. I think it will be safe to sign,” Mikhail said, still in disbelief, but also thankful because he will never need to worry about Blaine’s future. He was going to be ok.

Blaine and Kurt took their time signing the forms handed to them by Annalisa and passed them back to her. “That is it then. My job here is done. I will still come to the office every few days to make sure that everything is ok. If you do decide to leave, please don’t forget to say goodbye to Mama and Uncle Giovanni. They will miss you,” she said, placing a kiss on each of their cheeks and hugging them both.

“You really do look like them,” she whispered before turning around and walking out the door.

Kurt and Blaine watched her walk out and then looked at each other. The weight of what just happened finally hit them. They were now head of the foundation, and Blaine’s Mama and Otets were here. Blaine had forgotten that they would be coming for Princess Annunziata’s wedding, and he was so glad to see them, even though he knows he will miss them more when the time comes for them to leave.

“So, have you found a place to stay yet, we have plenty of room if you would like to stay here,” Blaine said to his parents.

“That would be perfect, moy mal’chik,” Polina said, pulling them each into her arms. “Happy birthday boys. I’m so glad I’m finally here.”

“I’m so glad you are here too, Mama. So very glad,” Blaine said with a smile, walking over to the bell pull so he could ask Signora Alba to please get a room ready for his parents, no, _their_ parents, he thought with a smile. Life was good.

A/N: Here is a list of the food Kurt made for Blaine for their birthday breakfast.

Buterbrody- Is an open-faced sandwich made with different types of sausages, cheeses, smoked fish, and spreads.

Kasha- A type of porridge made from different grains.

Zapekanka- A breakfast cake with farmers cheese small pieces of chopped candied orange or other citrus peel, mini chocolate chips and chopped dried berries or fruit soaked in rum or brandy.


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: Here is the final chapter of this one-shot that ended up being longer than the original story lol. Thank you once again to my amazing beta JayHawkWrites for catching my mistakes, and to pandas.mom for catching one with both missed. Thanks to everyone who took the time to read my story. Also thank you for all the reviews, Kudo's, follows, and likes I have gotten on this story. It meant a lot. I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy. TB.

~*~

“Can you believe that, Kurt? Can you believe how my father accepted you, accepted us? I am so shocked,” Blaine said as they walked into their room.

They had both gone to their respective rooms, aware that Blaine’s parents were watching them. It wasn’t long before the connecting doors between those rooms were opened and Blaine joined Kurt in their room. He couldn’t keep the smile off of his face as he thought of the events that had just transpired. His three favorite people were now under the same roof, and his father, someone he had always been afraid to tell his secret too, still loved and supported him. Life was good.

“I’m so happy for you Blaine, I really am. I know how much you hated not being as close to your father as you used to. How you felt this drove a wedge between the two of you,” Kurt said, pulling Blaine into a hug and kissing him.

“I know. I just wish we could say the same about your father,” Blaine said, sad that his family issues seemed to resolve themselves, but Kurt’s was anything but.

“I’m afraid my father is a lost cause, but I’m happy for you. You are one of the best people I know. You deserve to be happy,” Kurt said with a sad smile.

“I just wish you could be happy too, Kurt. I wish we could have the same for you,” Blaine said, placing a kiss on Kurt’s lips.

“I _am_ happy Blaine. I have you and that is all I need. As long as I always have you, I’ll be ok and the happiest man around,” Kurt answered.

“And I will always be happy to be with you. I love you, my sweet boy,” Blaine whispered, pulling Kurt closer to him, hating that he was in pain. He had seen the look Kurt had tried to hide from him while they were downstairs talking to Mikhail and Polina. The look of longing, the wish that he and his father could once again be close, the way they were before his mother died. Blaine knew this hurt Kurt more than he would ever say and wished he knew a way to make it better for him. Kurt deserved happiness.

“And I love you. Yes, I miss my father, well the father I used to have. He has changed so much over the years that I almost don’t recognize him,” Kurt said, placing his head on Blaine’s shoulder and wrapping his arms around his waist as he held him close. “But right here in your arms is the only place I will ever need to be. My life begins and ends with you. As long as I have you, I have everything I will ever need.”

“And you will always have me, sweetheart. I will always be here for you. You complete me. You are my happiness. You are my everything,” Blaine said, placing a soft kiss on top of Kurt’s head. “Are you ready for bed?”

Kurt nodded his head. Never taking his eyes off of Blaine, he stripped off his clothes. He had never really been comfortable with his own body, but with Blaine, Kurt almost felt worshipped as Blaine watched him undress. Blaine pulled the covers on their bed down and watched as Kurt crawled naked between the sheets. Looking at Kurt’s beautifully naked form, Blaine felt himself harden quickly, he stripped off his clothes and followed Kurt into bed.

They made love that night for the first time. Soft, slow, and sweet. A melding of heart, body, and soul. As Blaine entered Kurt’s body for the first time, feeling Kurt’s tight warmth around him, Blaine was once again in awe of the man under him, and the love he had flooding through him. When Blaine slowly started to move in and out of Kurt, he knew he could spend the rest of his life doing nothing more than making sweet love to his husband, his Kurt, his life. Kurt was pure perfection in an imperfect world.

They spent the rest of the night whispering soft words of love and sharing sweet kisses until they both slipped into sleep with smiles on their faces and love in their heart. Life was good.

oOoOo

Kurt and Blaine made their way downstairs holding each other's hands, unable to keep the satisfied smiles off of their faces. If it weren’t for the fact that Kurt knew Blaine’s parents were in the house, and that they needed to be good hosts, they would have spent the day in bed making love.

“Oh, I forgot. I have something for you for your birthday. I intended to give it to you last night before we went to bed, but I got pleasurably distracted by my gorgeous husband,” Blaine said with a wink, walking to the music room and over to the piano, handing Kurt the book he had found for him.

“Oh, Blaine, where did you find this? How did you even know?” Kurt asked, looking at the book with tears filling his eyes. That book had meant so much to him and had helped him through some difficult times. He had hated it the day he had to give it back to his neighbor.

“I heard you talking to one of the maids a few weeks ago. You told them how much the book meant to you. I found it in one of the many shops I looked through this month trying to find the perfect thing for your birthday,” Blaine said, placing a kiss on Kurt’s cheek. Seeing the look of happiness crossing his face was worth every minute he had spent looking for it.

“I have something for you as well,” Kurt said hesitantly, now unsure of his gift. He had started working on it right after they got to Venice while Blaine was at the palace. Kurt knew how much Blaine missed his parents and he hated that he was the reason for their separation. Taking Blaine’s hand, Kurt guided him to the library.

Kurt had set up a room in the back of the villa for his work. He had needed something to do with his time while Blaine was away working with the Princess. He had chosen a room in the back of the villa, hoping that with the French doors open, any dust he created would go outside and not make more work for the staff to deal with. No one had complained, but they wouldn’t, would they? Kurt had also figured that the room would make the perfect place to work on Blaine’s birthday present. He had thought for a long time what to get him. If there wasn’t a room full of musical instruments, Kurt would have gotten him something like that. Instead, he opted to make him something. He had completed it and carried it into the library two days ago, covering it with a piece of velvet material in case Blaine happened on to it.

Kurt had painted a picture of Blaine’s parents. He had only seen Blaine’s father once, and that had been in full military dress, so Kurt had used his memory of that day, and the day he had met Polina to paint a portrait for Blaine. Kurt had always loved to paint his dolls, making each one different from the one before. This was the first time he had ever tried painting actual people and had thought it looked good, but standing beside Blaine as the silence stretched between them, Kurt started to have his doubts.

Blaine couldn’t believe what he was looking at. Kurt had captured his parents perfectly. He could remember all the times he had seen this same look on his father’s face, how proud he always looked when in full military dress, and the look of love that always sparkled in his mother’s eyes when she looked at him.

“Kurt,” Blaine whispered, turning to look at Kurt with tears running down his cheeks. Blaine gently sat the picture back on its easel and pulled Kurt into his arms, kissing him soundly. “I love it. Thank you so much,” Blaine said, kissing Kurt again.

Hearing someone clearing their throat behind them had Kurt and Blaine pulling apart. Blaine turned around and saw his father staring at them. He waited for what his father was going to do. Yes, they had talked last night, and Mikhail had seemed ok with Blaine and Kurt’s relationship, but seeing his son kiss another man might change things. Blaine wrapped his arm protectively around Kurt’s waist. If his father was going to do something, he would do it to Blaine only. He would not allow Kurt to be hurt again.

“Otets,” Blaine said, looking at his father, waiting for what he knew for sure was coming.

“Sorry to disturb you both. I just wanted to talk to you a moment if that is ok,” Mikhail said, looking first at his son and then at Kurt.

“Have a seat, sir,” Kurt said, motioning to one of the chairs in the room while he and Blaine chose to sit in chairs opposite so they could face each other.

“I was doing a lot of thinking last night, and then again this morning. I don’t want to hurt your feelings son, or yours, Kurt, and it isn’t my intention to make you mad, but I need to ask. Have you thought this through, the path you have chosen for yourselves? Understand I will support you in all things, but there are people outside these walls that would love nothing more than to pull you apart, be it here in Venice, or back home. Have you both thought this through?” Mikhail asked, looking at his son with all the love he felt for him shining in his eyes.

“Yes, sir. Kurt is all I will ever need in my life. I know we will have to hide from the world what we are to each other, pretend we are brothers even. We will need to hide from the world what we feel, but to me, he is worth it. I can’t see myself with anyone else. I know in my heart there _is_ no one else,” Blaine answered.

“I feel the same, sir. I know you don’t know me, but I love your son. He is my life. I know we haven’t known each other long, but I can’t see myself ever being happy with anyone else. I would rather spend a lifetime hidden away with him than a moment spent away from him,” Kurt answered as well, looking back at Blaine with a sweet smile on his face.

“Then that is settled,” Mikhail said, standing up. When Blaine and Kurt followed suit standing up, Mikhail pulled them both into his arms. “Welcome to the family, son.”

The three men met Polina in the hallway and they all made their way to the breakfast room. Kurt was at once glad he had worked with the cook on the new menu so that his ‘in-laws’ had a proper Russian breakfast their first morning in Venice. They had almost finished eating when the butler walked into the room carrying a silver tray with a card in the center. “Sirs, you have visitors.”

Kurt reached out for the card, looked at it a moment in shock before passing it to Blaine. Kurt watched as a smile spread across his face and Blaine stood up to look at his parents. “Princess Daria and Prince Aleksandr Menshikov have arrived. Lorenzo, please show them in.”

Blaine barely had time to finish his sentence, before Princess Daria was pulling him into a tight hug. He had missed her. “Blaine, you have been missed. I can’t find a single person that comes close to your talent. I almost had to stop my lunches. I need you to come back.”

“I would love to come back. Both Kurt and I have missed Saint Petersburg, we have missed home, but Kurt can’t go back, and I will not go without him. Kurt needs to be safe,” Blaine answered her, hating to disappoint her. “He cannot be safe as long as his father is there. I’m sorry, but I must decline.”

“Blaine, I believe I had a conversation with you several months ago, in front of your father none the less, about saying no to my Princess,” the Prince said with a smile, stepping further into the room, looking at Blaine the way he had then.

“Blaine, if you want to go back, that’s fine. I know how much you have missed your family, have missed your home. I don’t want to be the reason you are unhappy. To me, it wouldn’t be worth it,” Kurt whispered to Blaine. Yes, it would hurt him to see Blaine walk away from him, but it would hurt worse if he finally started resenting Kurt for it later down the line.

“Kurt, you are my husband now. Where you go, I go. Where you stay, I stay. End of discussion,” Blaine argued before he heard four different voices scream, “ ** _WHAT_** …”

“Oh… yeah,” Blaine said, looking at everyone in the room. “We know our marriage isn’t legal in the eyes of the law or world even, but we committed ourselves to each other yesterday, and to us, that is all that matters. He is my husband, and I am his.”

“Congratulations to both of you,” Princess Daria said, pulling them both into a hug, the biggest smile on her face. She had explained Blaine and Kurt’s situation to the Prince on their way here, outside of Blaine’s parent's hearing, of course. She had explained that the two men were in love like she and himself were. Prince Aleksandr might not have understood it all, but had agreed to support Blaine and Kurt, knowing how close to Blaine his Princess had become.

“And you were planning to tell your mother and me when?” Mikhail asked standing up, bowing to his Prince and Princess before looking at his son.

“Otets, we were going to explain everything after breakfast. We weren’t trying to hide it. We wanted to allow you time to settle in and then we were going to tell you this morning. I didn’t mean to just blurt it out like that, but Kurt needed to know where I stood,” Blaine said to his parents, hoping that the understanding of last night didn’t just slip away this morning.

Kurt stood up and bowed to the Prince and Princess before walking over to Blaine “Prince Aleksandr, Princess Daria, if you haven’t already eaten, we would be happy to have you join us. Then we can all talk,” Kurt said looking at everyone.

After breakfast, Kurt took everyone into the library so they could talk in a more comfortable setting. Blaine and Kurt explained to the Prince and Princess how they came to have the house and Blaine’s parents how they had decided to commit to each other. After hashing everything out, things went back to a more even keel.

“Kurt, is the only reason you are staying away from home because of your father?” Prince Aleksandr asked Kurt, his face turning serious once again. “Or is there something else within Saint Petersburg that would be holding you back?”

“No, Your Highness. I loved living in Saint Petersburg. I like my little shop and that I could take care of myself if need be. I just knew I couldn’t let my Otets continue to run my life, and after he remarried and kicked me out of his home, I knew I was running out of time. He threatened me with things I would have been very unhappy with, sir,” Kurt answered.

“May I know what you were threatened with, Mr. Hamburg?” the Prince asked, getting quiet, a look of anger crossing his face. Hearing that one of his subjects had been threatened by his own father no less had put him in quite a defensive mood.

“I’m sorry, sir. It's not that I wouldn’t happily support you when and if the time ever arose, but he threatened me with a commission. He gave me no choice. Marriage to a woman or the military,” Kurt answered the Prince.

“Mr. Hamburg, not everyone is cut out for the military way of life and the thought of a father using that to threaten their child makes me sick. You don’t have to worry, Mr. Hamburg. Your father will never be able to sign a commission for you, not just because I will never allow him too, but also because he no longer lives in Saint Petersburg,” the Prince said angrily.

“I don’t understand, sir. Why is my father no longer in Saint Petersburg?” Kurt asked the Prince in shock.

“Let’s just say that he has been up to his old business and also he no longer has that woman as a wife. Your father has been kicked out of the military and has been shipped off to Siberia, and she refused to go with him, saying her ‘business’ was here. Their marriage has been annulled, but unfortunately, the house has been given to her, and for that, I apologize,” the Prince answered.

“So, Otets is no longer in Saint Petersburg?” Kurt said, for the first time since he knew he had to leave, hopeful that they could really go home.

“Yes, he is no longer welcome in Saint Petersburg, now or ever, by royal decree,” the Prince responded, happy to see a smile back on Mr. Hamburg’s face again.

“Blaine, we can go home,” Kurt whispered, the biggest smile Blaine had ever seen on his face. “We can really go home if you want to.”

“Kurt, I would love nothing more than to go back to Russia with you. I would follow you to the end of the world if need be, happily,” Blaine laughed as Kurt tackled him and almost made his fall out of his chair, laughing. They were going home.

oOoOo

After Princess Annunziata’s wedding, Prince Aleksandr and Princess Daria went back home and Blaine’s parents stayed for the rest of the week. They spent that time getting to know Kurt treating him more like a son than his own dad had in a long time. Kurt was glad to be going home, but he knew that he would always miss the father he used to have. The one who had let a child learn how to carve nesting dolls because ‘ _his mama would have loved it_.’ Not all of their relationship had been bad, it was just towards the end that the bad outweighed the good, unfortunately.

Blaine and Kurt worked closely with Annalisa learning everything they would need to know about running the foundation. They were both glad that she would be staying behind to look after the house and every one of the charities they had started. Because of the changes going on in Russia, Blaine, Kurt, and Giovanni agreed that the biggest portion of the foundation finances would stay in the Bank Of Venice, funds could always be transferred as needed.

The hardest part of all was the saying goodbye, especially to Gianna. She was left saying goodbye to her fathers for the second time. She understood, but it still hurt. Kurt and Blaine decided that if they had any children, they would ask, when the time came for the new generation to learn that their children stay away, not to get involved, to save them the hurt they now understood they would be facing. They never wanted to leave another child behind to cry.

After much deliberation, Giovanni opted to follow Kurt and Blaine to Russia to help get the bank set up so transfers could be made as needed, and so the foundation would have somewhere to keep their money. Kurt and Blaine hated to be saying goodbye but were ready to go home. Even though in the book, in the letter left behind for Blaine and in their dreams, they were told they would remember everything, they still hadn’t, and that was probably for the best.

Giovanni opted to stay in Russia, never returning to Venice. He worked for the bank he had started with Blaine and Kurt, until his death, and then his son stepped in and took over in his place.

Blaine spent the rest of his life working for the Princess whenever she asked, but his main vocation was as pianist for the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg. On request, he would also play at the majestic Bolshoi in Moscow. He became very well known and highly sought after.

Kurt continued with his crafting of nesting dolls, selling them around the world. He also started painting portraits, his most famous one hung in The Menshikov Palace, a portrait he had painted for Prince Aleksandr and Princess Daria Menshikov in honor of the twenty-fifth wedding anniversary. The walls of the palace had many Kurt Andreyev original portraits, which mostly consisted of pictures of the royal children.

As the old mage had promised, they had financial security and love beyond measure. When their time drew near, once again, Blaine worked with a stone master to create their newest statue, one that represented their life this time around. Their wills had been made, their donation to the foundation left, and their letter was written to point the next new generation in the right direction. They had 58 beautiful years together and couldn’t have been happier. Walking over to the statue, Kurt could do nothing but smile. Blaine had always, in all their lifetimes, kept the design of their statue a secret until their last night together.

“Oh, Blaine, it is beautiful,” Kurt said in awe, looking at a duplicate of the nesting doll Kurt had created so long ago for the Prince. Because Kurt had been there to deliver the doll, they had eventually met. “It is perfect.”

“I knew right away what it needed to be. How could I have made it anything else, my sweet boy?” Blaine asked, leaning in to place a kiss on his cheek and then stood back and watched as Kurt pushed the black button on the left-hand back corner of the base. Watching as a door swung open, Kurt pulled out the little drawer and put their book inside. Kurt had added their letter to it just the night before, making sure the velvet bag of seeds was secure on the last page of their story.

Before Kurt and Blaine left Venice, Kurt had gone into the back garden and pulled a seed pod off of the magnolia tree. When he and Blaine had finally gotten their new home built, Kurt had planted a magnolia tree, deciding from that day forward, a seed would be saved and passed on to the next new generation to plant.

Blaine had hidden the letter to point to the hiding place of their rings, and before heading to their bed for the last time, Blaine took them and put them where they would be found when the time was right. Holding hands they walked upstairs for the last time, climbed in their bed, shared one last kiss, and drifted off together the way it had always been meant for them too. Life had been good.

oOoOo

Kurt and Blaine would be surprised to know that hundreds of years later, their statue would be placed in a concrete statue museum, snuggled next to a statue of a crown. But alas, that is a story for another day.

The End….. As always, for now.


End file.
